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OF 



William Walker ArwNSON 






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NUGGETS 



OF 



THE NEW THOUGHT 



Several Things That Have Helped People 



BY 



WILLIAM WALKER ATKINSON 



ASSOCIATE EDITOR OF "NEW THOUGHT," CHICAGO; AUTHOR 

OF "THOUGHT FORCE," "THE LAW OF THE 

NEW THOUGHT," ETC. 



PUBLISHED BY 

THE PSYCHIC RESEARCH COMPANY, 

j8?$ Vincennes Ave. 

CHICAGO, ILL., U. S. A. 
1902 






THE LIBRARY OF 
CONGRESS, 

T*o Cc*itc RtoarED 

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C«-A*8 £*- XXC HO. 

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COPY B. 



COPYRIGHT, 1902, 

BY THE PSYCHIC RESEARCH COMPANY, 

CHICAGO, IIX- 

All Rights Reserved. 



NOTICE.— This work is protected by Copyright, and simultaneous initial publication 
in United States of America, Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia and other countries. 
All rights reserved. 



PREFACE. 

I do not like writing a preface — it seems too much like an 
apology. I have no special apology to tender for offering this 
collection of New Thought nuggets. They may possess no 
literary merit, but they have helped men and women. With the 
exception of "The Secret of the I Am," these essays appeared 
from month to month in "New Thought," of which magazine I 
am associate editor. They were written hastily, principally upon 
the demand of the printer for "copy," and, for the most part, 
were printed just as they were written, there being no time for 
revision or polishing up. You may pick up any one of them and 
find many sentences needing straightening out — many thoughts 
which could be better expressed by the change of a few words. 
Knowing these things, I first thought that I would go over each 
essay and add a little here, and take away a little there, polishing 
up and burnishing as I went along. But when I looked over them, 
my heart failed me. There they were just as they were written 
— just as they were dug out of my mind — and I hadn't the heart 
to change them. I remembered the circumstances surrounding 
the writing of every one of them, and I let them alone. 
A "nugget" polished up would be no longer a nugget. And 
these thoughts are nuggets — I dug them myself. I will not say 
much regarding the quality of the metal — that is for you — but 
you see them just as they came from the mine — rough, unpolished, 
mixed with the rock, queerly shaped. If you think that they 
contain metal of sufficiently good quality, refine them, melt them 
and fashion them into something useful or ornamental. For 
myself, I like things with the bark on — with the marks of the 
hammer — with the original quartz adhering to the metal. But 
others are of different taste — they like everything to feel smooth 
to the touch. They will not like these nuggets. Alas, I cannot 
help it — I cannot produce the beautifully finished article — I have 
nothing to offer other than the crude product of the mine. Here 
they are, polish them up yourself if you prefer them in that shape 
— I will not touch them. W. W. A. 

Chicago, October 2, 1902. 



CONTENTS 



THE KEYNOTE. 



"I Can and I Will " — The recognition— Equal to any task 
— A feeling of calm confidence — An abiding sense of 
power, reserve force and security — The Something within 
— The triple key to the door of attainment — The vibra- 
tions of Success 9 

THE SECRET OF THE I AM. 

The Ego — The physical plane — the mental plane — the new 
plane of consciousness — The Real Self — The "I" — The 
Temple of the giving Spirit — Development of the "I Am" 
consciousness. — The Higher Reason 12 

"let a little sunshine in." 

The young people's song — Good "New Thought" doctrine 
— Plenty of sunshine in life, if you look for it — Don't make 
a dark dungeon of your mind — Throw open the windows of 
your soul — How to let a little sunshine in 17 

THE HUNGER OF THE SOUL. 

The soul, as well as the body and mind, requires nourishment 
— The want, a promise of the fulfillment — The law of 
unfoldment — Nourishment provided when it is needed — 
Provided for in the Divine Plan — The feast of good things. 19 

LOOK ALOFT. 

The old sailor's advice — The warning cry — Peace and content 
— Mental balance recovered — The glory of the Universe — 
All governed by Law — The Law manifests everywhere — 
A reverent feeling of calm, peaceful faith — Look aloft 24 

TO-MORROW. 

The work and cares of to-day easy if we do not worry about 
those of To-morrow — The mysterious To-morrow and its 
terrors — The way to meet the cares of To-morrow — To- 
morrow's opportunities will come as surely as To-morrow's 
cares — Law supreme— No need to be afraid — The real 

To-morrow 26 

4 



Contents. 5 

IN THE DEPTHS OF THE SOUL. 

Stores of information ; rich mines of knowledge ; uncut gems 
and precious metal awaiting the discoverer — Psychic and 
spiritual faculties— Strange attraction of soul to soul — The 
Rock of Ages — The Voice of the Soul 29 

FORGET IT. 

Why worry about the past — Hugging old sorrows to your 
Bosom — What to do with them — Don't Poison your life — 
Pain brings experience — Learning your lesson — How to get 
rid of a gloomy thought — Throw it away — Forget it 34 

THE KINDERGARTEN OF GOD. 

Life a great school — Man a child learning his lesson — 
Preparing for higher grades — The game-task — What it all 
means — Things as they are — The rules wise and good — 
Each task means something — Greeting the Kinder gartner. . 36 

THE HUMAN WET BLANKET. 

\ 

Sees no good in anything — Expects the bad and gets it — 
Attracts it to him — Depresses everything and everyone — 
Carries an aura of negative depressing thought — Clammy 
— Puts out the fire Of energy — Take Warning 39 

AIM STRAIGHT. 

Fear attracts as well as Desire — Learn to aim straight and aim 
at the right thing — Examples — The bowler — The bicyclist 
and the car — The bicyclist and the post — The boy and the 
marbles — Wisdom from the babe — Look straight; Think 
straight; Shoot Straight 41 

AT HOME. 

Don t be afraid — You are at home — Not here by chance — You 
belong here — YOU are the soul — YOU cannot be hurt — 
YOU cannot be banished — YOU are right in the universe, 
and there is no outside — Great things are before you — Make 
yourself at home 46 

THE SOLITUDE OF THE SOUL. 

Lorado Taft's group — Description — Each stands alone — Each 
is in touch with every other— Soul communion in silence — 
Silence is the sanctuary of the soul — The oneness of life and 
its apparent separateness — The message 48 



6 Contents. 

jerry and the bear. 

The Law's plan of developing an individual — Folly of clinging 
to old worn out sheaths — The story of Jerry and the Bear 
— Who Jerry was — He meets the Bear— The fight — The 
result — The consequences— The change in Jerry — The moral 5 1 

THE UNSEEN HAND. 

The consciousness of the hand — When it first was felt — Always 
there— : Now as the hand of a father — Now as that of a 
mother — A lover — A brother — Always guiding — Always 
leading — A mystery — Some day we will know the owner of 
the hand 55 

HOW SUCCESS COMES. 

Seeking success through mental powers — Holding the thought 
alone not sufficient — How to get the real benefit of thought- 
force — Fall in with the workings of the Law — Stand on your 
own feet— One step at a time — "I Do" as well as* 'I Am" 58 

THE MAN WITH THE SOUTHERN EXPOSURE. 

Southern exposure as good a thing in a man as in a room — 
The man who faces the sun — Lives one day at a time and 
does the best he knows how, and is kind — Finds Joy and 
carries it to others — Simple, loving, kind — Open yourself to 
the sun 60 

A FOREWORD. 

An individualist — Wearing no ticket or label — No one has a 
corner on Truth — Enough to go around — The Infinite 
Power back of all things— The Real Self is Spirit— The 
Law of Attraction — Fearthought — The Brotherhood of Man 63 

PARTNERSHIP. 

Next to marriage, partnership is the most important associa- 
tion — Mental partnerships — Be careful whom you choose as 
your mental partners — Get into partnership with the best 
thoughts — Dissolve partnership with the other kind — "I 
Can, I Will; I Do, I Dare." 65 



Contents. 7 

the) seekers. 

The secret of life — the riddle of existence — Sought now as 
ever — The whyness of things — Attempts to answer the rid- 
dle — The Seekers — Fantastic creeds and queer philosophies 
— Revamping old ideas — The story of the man and the stars 
— The answer to be found within the soul 69 

MENTAL PICTURES. 

"I hang bright pictures in my mind" — Bright pictures en- 
courage one; gloomy ones depress — Get rid of your old, 
gloomy mental pictures — Make a bonfire of them — Get rid 
of the particularly miserable one, first of all — Then put 
bright ones in their places 73 

don't retail your woes. 

A miserable habit — It grows as it is fed — A nuisance to friends 
and neighbors — It brings to you more of the same kind — 
You will get what you look for — Rooking for trouble brings 
it — Don't imagine that you are being "put upon" — Don't 
retail your woes 75 

LIFE. 

There is in each of us a potential Something seeking for 
expression — The Something Within — The plant of life — 
No use trying to repress it, for develop it must — Life has a 
meaning — Growth, development and unfoldment — The 
lesson of life 79 

LET US HAVE FAITH. 

Faith necessary in every human undertaking — You have faith 
in man, but are afraid to trust GOD — The Universe if gov- 
erned by Law— The Law is in operation everywhere — Don't 
be afraid — You are a part of the plan — Fall in with the Law 
— Have faith, have faith 83 

DO IT NOW. 

Do to-day's tasks now— Don't try to do to-morrow's work 
to-day, but be sure and do the day's work Now — The 
baneful effects of procrastination— Not fair to yourself — 
Demoralization attendant upon putting off things — The 
world looking for people who can do things Now 87 



8 Contents. 

get in tune. 

Marconi's wireless messages — Vibrations reach only the in- 
struments attuned to the sender — The same law in operation 
on the mental plane — The correct pitch is the thing — Get 
in tune with the proper vibrations — Get the messages from 
the best senders 89 

MENTAL TOXIN AND ANTI-TOXIN. 

A new toxin — The microbes in the thoughts we think — The 
new anti-toxin — Thoughts may poison — Fear causes paral- 
ysis — Hate causes insanity — Fear and Hate have killed their 
thousands — Gates' experiments — How to overcome the 
poison of bad-thinking 91 



The New Thought. 



THE KEYNOTE. 

"I Can and I Will" — The recognition — Equal to any task — A feeling of 
calm confidence — An abiding sense of power, reserve force and se- 
curity — The Something within — The triple key to the door of attain- 
ment — The vibrations of Success. 

"I Can and I Will ! ! !" Have you ever said these words 
to yourself with a firm conviction that you were speaking 
the truth — with the strong feeling that needed no other 
proof. If so, you then felt within you a thrill which seemed to 
cause every atom of your being to vibrate in harmony with some 
note in the grand scale of Life, sounded by the Real Self. You 
caught a momentary glimpse of the Inner Light — heard a stray 
note of the Song of the Soul — were conscious for the moment of 
YOURSELF. And in that moment of ecstacy you knew that 
untold power and possibilities were yours. You felt that you 
were in touch with all Strength, Power, Knowledge, Happiness 
and Peace. You felt that you were equal to any task—capable 
of executing any undertaking. For the moment there was no v 
Fear in the world for you. All the Universe seemed to vibrate in 
the same key with your thought. For the moment you Recog- 
nized the Truth. 

But alas, the spirit of doubt, distrust, fear and unfaith called 
you again to Earth — and the vision faded. And yet, the remem- 
brance of the sight — the echo of the sound — the remnant of the 
new-found strength — is with you still. You still find that memory 
to be a stimulus to great efforts — a comforting thought in times 
of weakness and trial. You have been able to accomplish much 
by the aid of the lingering vibrations of the mighty thought. 

In times of great peril — grave perplexities — life and death 
struggles, a feeling of calm confidence and strength often comes 
to us, and we are borne on by a power of us and in us (and yet 
in everything else, too) that seems to lift us off our feet and 
sweep us on to safety — to peace — to rest. We are possessed of 
an abiding sense of power, reserve force and security. When 
extraordinary conditions confront us — when our bodies seem 
paralyzed — our minds stupefied — our will power gone, we are 
often made conscious of the existence of the Real Self, and it 
answers our involuntary demand, and comes to rescue with the 
cheering cry : "I AM HERE" ! 

Many of us have made use of this inner strength without real- 
izing it. One day we were sorely distressed and made the demand, 
and lo! it was answered. We knew not from whence came this 
new-found strength, but we were conscious of the uplift, and 
felt more confidence in ourselves, The next time we confidently 



io Nuggets of 

demanded the aid, and again we were answered. We acquired 
that which we call confidence and faith in ourselves, and were 
carried over many a dark place and started on the road to Suc- 
cess. Our repeated success caused us to think and speak of our 
"luck," and we grew to believe that we had a "star," and took 
chances and risks that others would not dream of. We dared. 
We made some apparent failures, but we soon came to know 
them as only lessons leading to ultimate success. The "I Can 
and I Will" feeling carried us over rough places safely, and we 
got to simply know that we would "get there" in the end. 

And so we went on and on, knowing that if we advanced three 
steps and slipped back two, we were still one step ahead. We 
had confidence, because we knezv that "things would come our 
way" in the end. And so long as we held this attitude, we did 
succeed, and it was only when we lost heart at some unexpected 
slip — only when, after having attained success, we became dazed 
and frightened, and began to fear that our "luck might turn" and 
that we would lose all of our accumulations — is was only then, I 
say — that our star waned. 

Talk with any successful man, and, if truthful, he will admit 
having felt, from the time of his first success, that he had some 
sort of "pull" with Fate — some "lucky star" — some special Prov- 
idence operating in his behalf. He grew to expect results — to 
have confidence in things turning out right — to have faith in 
something of which he knew not the nature — and he was not 
disappointed. Things seemed to work in his favor — not always 
just in the way he expected, sometimes in an entirely different 
way — matters seemed somehow to straighten themselves out 
in the end — so long as he kept his "nerve." He did not know the 
source of his strength, but he believed in it and trusted it just the 
same. 

Let us wake up and recognize this Something Within — let us 
begin to understand this "I Can and I Will" feeling — let us cher- 
ish it if we have it, and cultivate it if we have it not. Do you 
know that we are young giants who have not discovered our own 
strength ? Are you not aware that there are powers latent within 
us, pressing forth for development and unfoldment? Do you 
not know that earnest desire, faith and calm demand will bring 
to us that which we require — will place at our hand the tools 
with which we are to work out our destiny — will guide us in 
the proper use of the tools — will make us grow? Do you not 
know that Desire, Faith and Work is the triple key to the doors 
of Attainment? There are possibilities before us, awaiting our 
coming, of which we have never dreamed. Let us assert our- 
selves — take up the key — unlock the doors — and enter our king- 
dom. 

To accomplish, we must be possessed of earnest desire — must 
be as confident of ultimate success as we are of the rising of to- 



The New Thought. ii 

morrow's sun — we must have Faith. And we must work out 
the end with the tools and instruments that will present themselves 
day by day. We will find that Desire, Confidence, Faith and 
Work will not only brush aside the obstacles from our path, but 
will also begin to assert that wonderful force, as yet so little un- 
derstood — the Law of Attraction — which will draw to us that 
which is conducive to our success, be it ideas, people, things, yes, 
even circumstances. Oh, ye of little Faith, why do you not see 
these things? 

The world is looking for these "I Can and I Will" people — 
it has places ready for them — the supply does not begin to equal 
the demand. Pluck up courage ye unfortunate ones — ye doubters 
— ye "I Can't" people ! Begin the fight by abolishing Fear from 
your minds. Then start to climb the ladder of Attainment, 
shouting "I CAN AND I WILL" with all your might, drowning 
out the sound of the "buts," "ifs," "supposings," "you can'ts" 
and "aren't you a f raids" of your wet-blanket friends at the foot 
of the ladder. Do not bother about t{ie upper rounds of the lad- 
der — you will reach them in time — but give your whole attention 
to the round just ahead of you, and when you have gained a 
firm footing on that, then look at the next one. One round at a 
time, remember, and give your entire attention to each step. 
Climb with Desire, Confidence and Faith inspiring each step, and 
the task will become a pleasure. You will be conscious of some 
mighty force attracting you upward and onward as you pro- 
gress. And don't try to pull some other fellow of! the ladder — 
there's room enough for both of you — be kind, be kind. 

If you fail to feel the "I Can and I Will" vibrations within 
you, start in today, and say "I Can and I Will" — think "I Can 
and I Will"— ACT "I Can and I Will," and get the vibrations 
started in motion. Remember that as the one note of the violin, 
if constantly sounded, wijl cause the mighty bridge to vibrate in 
unison so will one positive thought, held constantly, manifest 
itself both in yourself, others and things. So begin sounding 
the note today — this very moment. Sound it constantly. 
Send forth a clear, glad, joyous note — a note of Faith — a note 
of coming Victory. Sound it over and over again, and soon 
you will become conscious that the vibrations have commenced, 
and that the mighty structure of your being is quivering and 
vibrating to the keynote :— "I CAN AND I WILL." 



12 Nuggets of 



THE SECRET OF THE "I AM » 

The Ego — The physical plane — The mental plane — The mw plane of 
consciousness— The Real Self— The "I"— The Temple of the Living 
Spirit — Development of the "I Am" consciousness — The Higher Rea- 
son. 

"Lord of a thousand worlds am I, 

And I reign since time began; 
And Night and Day in cyclic sway, 

Shall pass while their deeds I scan. 
Yet time shall cease, ere I find release, 

For I am the Soul of Man." 

—Charles HI Orr. 

Many of us are accustomed to thinking of ourselves on the 
physical plane alone. When we think of the Ego — the 
"I" of ourselves, we picture it as a human body with 
organs ranging from the finest — the brain, down to those of 
coarser atomic structure. To one living on this plane of con- 
sciousness the body is the real self, and the Mind but an append- 
age to the body. Such a man speaks of "my mind" or "my soul," 
as he speaks of "my hat," "my coat," "my shoes" — as things 
belonging to him, which he uses, but which are not him. To him 
the Body is the real man — the Mind something useful to the body 
— the Spirit a nebulous hypothetical something of which he has 
but a hazy idea and no consciousness. He lives on the physical 
plane alone. 

Others picture their "I" as Intellect or Mind, having control 
of the body and its organs, and having its abode in the brain, or 
brains, of the human being. To these people the Intellect is the 
Real Self, in fact to many of this class the Intellect is elevated 
to the position of God, and they bow down to and worship it. 
They realize the subjection of the body to the Mind, and are 
aware of the wonderful power of the latter over the particular 
body under its control ; the bodies of others ; the minds of others. 
To them the Intellect is the highest self, identical with the Spirit. 
They are conscious of the wonderful workings of the mind, but 
are conscious of nothing higher. To some of them death seems 
to end all, their idea of mind being that it is a product of the 
brain. Others feel that somehow, somewhere, their Intellect will 
maintain its existence, but it is merely a belief or hope, based 
upon the words of others who have claimed authority to speak. 
They have no consciousness of pre-existence or future existence 
— no perception of that REAL SELF which knows itself to be 
Eternal. 

A third class have so far progressed along the Path of Life 



The New Thought. 13 

that they have crossed the borders of a new plane of conscious- 
ness. They are in a strange land — they see no familiar landmarks 
— they do not recognize the country that lies before them. Their 
friends, whom they have left just a few feet behind across the 
border, do not seem to realize the difference the short distance 
has made to those who have traveled it, and therefore doubt the 
prospect seen from the new point of view. Those who have 
crossed the border find that they have acquired a consciousness 
of a real Existence. The "I" consciousness has passed beyond 
the Intellectual plane and is able to look back to that plane and 
the one still further back, the Physical plane. "I" recognizes 
the value of both Mind and Body, but regards them both as but 
instruments, tools or servants, with which to work. "I" feels 
that it has existed from the beginning (if beginning there was) 
and will exist until the end (if end there be). "I" feels a keen 
pleasure in mere existence — in the NOW. "I" knows itself to 
be a part of the WHOLE THING— knows that the UNIVERSE 
is its home. "I" knows itself to be a tiny drop of Spirit from 
the Great Spirit Ocean ; a ray from the Supreme Sun ; a particle 
of the Diyine Being, encased in a material body, using that body 
and a force called Mind, with which to manifest itself. "I" does 
not at present understand all things — far from it. It has not as 
yet been able to bring its tools to that degree of perfection. It 
merely knozvs that it IS, and has ALWAYS BEEN, and AL- 
WAYS WILL BE. "I" allows Intellect to indulge in specula- 
tions, but contents itself with the knowledge that it IS — it frets 
not itself with the problems of the past or future, but lives in the 
NOW, and knows itself to be a part of the WHOLE. "I" knows 
that it cannot be destroyed or injured — that it exists in accord- 
ance with Law (and that Law is Good) and asks no further light 
at this time, knowing that in its progress through matter, dis- 
carding sheath after sheath, more knowing will surely come. It 
says trustfully and confidently, to the Absolute: "Thy Will be 
Done." 

Knowing itself to be immortal, "I" has no fear of the death 
of the body — one body is as good as another to it — it is willing to 
lay aside the body as it does a coat, when it has outworn or out- 
grown it. Knowing itself to be impregnable to harm, "I" has no 
Fearthought — it fears nothing. Knowing that the Law is work- 
ing for development (always for ultimate good) "I" is not dis- 
turbed by the cares, troubles and sorrows of Life — it knows them 
for, what they are. The body may be in pain, the mind may be 
burdened with sorrow, but "I," knowing, smiles. 

"I" knows itself to be One with the "I" of all living creatures, 
and knowing this cannot manifest Hate, Fear, Envy, Jealousy — it 
cannot Despise or Condemn. These and other feelings of the 
old life drop from the person like a discarded mantle when "I" 
mounts its throne. "I" recognizes that others may not have 



14 Nuggets of 

progressed so far on the path as itself, but knows them to be but 
fellow travelers on the same road, who are doing the best they 
know how, considering their stage of the journey. "I" recognizes 
Ignorance — not Evil. "I" has but one feeling toward Mankind 
and the whole living world — LOVE. Aye, Love and Comrade- 
ship for even the last man, for it knows that that last man cannot 
be left out of the great scheme of Life. 

"I" knows that it has traveled a long road leading to its pres- 
ent position, and that all Life is traveling the same. "I" looks 
back and sees others covered with the mire and dust of the road, 
far back on the Path, but knowing that it has traveled the same 
stage of the journey — been covered with the same mire and mud 
— it cannot condemn. "I" knows that it is but on the threshold 
of the new consciousness — the borderland of the Cosmic Know- 
ing — and that far beyond lie regions of marvelous beauty which 
will in turn be traveled, and then on and on, increasing in 
strength and knowing-power each day. "I" sees endless phases 
of existence opening up to the vision — it cannot at this time 
understand, but it knows of the existence of the Law, and is 
content. "I" has the courage of Intelligent Faith, and presses 
forward cheerfully to the Divine Adventure. All this — and 
more. 

To the man or woman who understands, the task of self-de- 
velopment becomes a labor of love — an exalted task rather than 
the mere selfish striving after power. As the sculptor saw in 
the block of marble the form of the angel, and was impelled to 
cut away the surrounding material in order to liberate the 
angelic form — so may we, seeing the God-like form within us, 
strive to liberate it. That inner form is the real self — the "I." 
If you have never realized this truth, relax body and mind and 
indulge in a little introspection; turn your gaze inward; listen 
to the voice of the Spirit. You will be conscious of a faint 
recognition of the Something Within striving to make itself 
manifest to your understanding — asking for the proper tools with 
which to work. Listen, listen in The Silence! Day by day the 
Voice will grow plainer — day by day the Light will grow brighter 
— your own is coming to you, at last. O, joy unspeakable! O 
tears ! O laughter ! After long ages you are coming in sight of 
the Promised Land. 

Know yourself O Man! Know that you have within you the 
Divine Spark, to which both body and mind are but servants. 
Know that your body is the Temple of the Living Spirit and 
respect it as such. Know that your Intellect is but the instru- 
ment of the manifestation of the Spirit — the "I." 

Do not crawl on your belly like a worm ; do not humble your- 
self in the dust and call upon heaven to witness what a despicable 
creature you are; do not call yourself a miserable sinner worthy 
only of eternal damnation. No! a thousand times No! Rise to 



The New Thought. 15 

your feet; raise your head; face the skies; throw back your 
shoulders; fill your lungs with Nature's ozone. Then say to 
yourself: "I AM." 

Man has acquired a wonderful power when he can under- 
standingly say : "I AM a part of the Eternal Life Principle ; I 
AM created in the Divine Image; I AM filled with the Divine 
Breath of Life ; Nothing can hurt ME, for I AM ETERNAL." 

The first requisite for the acquirement of an understanding of 
the Law is the recognition of the existence and the power of the 
Real Self — the "I." The more complete the recognition the 
greater the power. Special directions for the acquirement of 
this faculty of recognition cannot be given. It must be grown 
into and felt, rather than reasoned out by the Intellect. You 
will not be long in doubt as to whether or not you are on the 
right track ; if you are right you will begin to realize it at once. 
You will have glimpses of it, and then it may slip away from 
you for a while, but fear not, you cannot escape it in the end. 

You will feel that your body is but as a garment which 
whilst covering you temporarily is not YOU. You will feel that 
you are separate and apart from your body, although for a time 
living in it. You will feel that you could as well live in some 
other body, and still retain your sense of individuality. You 
will realize then even your mind is not You, but is merely the 
instrument through which You manifest yourself, and which 
being imperfect prevents the complete expression of the Spirit. 
In short, when you say, or think, "I AM," you are conscious of 
the existence of your real self, and feel the growth of a new 
sense of power within you. This recognition of the self may be 
faint, but encourage it and it will grow, and whilst growing will 
manifest itself to your mind by impressing upon the latter the 
knowledge of the proper plan for further development. It is 
another example of "to him that hath shall be given." 

This mere calling of their attention to the fact will awaken 
the first glimmer of recognition in some; others will find it 
necessary to reflect upon the idea and awaken to a recognition 
of the Truth more slowly. Some will not feel the Truth. To 
such I say : The time is not yet ripe for your recognition of this 
great Truth, but the seed is planted and the plant will appear 
in time. This may seem like the veriest nonsense to you now, 
but the time will come when you will admit its literal correctness. 
You will find that a desire has been created that will cause a 
mental unrest until more light is received. As Walt Whitman 
says : "My words will itch in your ears till you understand them." 
As Emerson says : "You cannot escape from your good." To 
those who feel the first indications of the awakening of the Spirit, I 
say: Carry the thought with you and it will unfold like the 
lotus, naturally and gradually; the truth once recognized can- 
not be lost, and there is no standing still in nature. 



1 6 Nuggets of 

What has been said is but a faint hint of a mighty Truth, which 
nestles in the bosom of the esoteric teachings of all religions — in 
the philosophies of the Orient and of ancient Greece. You 
will find it in the songs of the poets — in the writings of the mys- 
tics. The advanced science of this age touches it without recog- 
nizing it fully. It is not a thing that can well be conveyed by 
words — it is not easily comprehended by purely intellectual pro- 
cesses — it must be felt and lived out by those who are ready for 
it — those for whom the time has come. It has been known to 
the Few throughout all ages and in all times. All races have 
known it. It has been handed down from teacher to pupil from 
the earliest days. It is that Truth which Edward Carpenter re- 
fers to when he says : 

"O, let not the flame die out ! Cherished age after age in its 
dark caverns, in its holy temples cherished. Fed by pure min- 
isters of love — let not the flame die out." 

It is difficult to convey even a hint of this Truth to any but 
those who are prepared to receive it. To others it will seem to be 
arrant folly. As Emerson says : "Every man's words, who 
speaks from that life, must sound vain to those who do not dwell 
in the same thought on their own part. I dare not speak for it. 
My words do not carry its august sense ; they fall short and cold. 
Only itself can inspire whom it will * * * * Yet I desire even 
by profane words, if sacred I may not use, to indicate the 
heaven of this deity, and to report what hints I have collected 
of the transcendent simplicity and energy of the Highest Law." 

If you prefer to try to solve the Problem of Life — the Riddle 
of the Universe — by scientific investigation, by exact reasoning, 
formal thought, mathematical demonstration — by all means follow 
this method. You will be taught the lesson of the power and 
the limitations of the human intellect. And after you have trav- 
eled round and round the circle of thought and find that you are 
but covering the same ground over and over again — after you 
have run into the intellectual cul de sac, the blind alley of Logic — 
after you have beaten your wings against the cage of the Un- 
knowable and fall exhausted and bruised — after you have done 
all these things and have learned your lesson — then listen to the 
voice within, see the tiny flame which burns steadily and cannot 
be extinguished, feel the pressure of the Something Within and 
let it unfold. You will then begin to understand that as the mind 
of Man developed by slow stages from mere sensation to simple 
consciousness ; from simple consciousness to self-consciousness 
(in its lower and higher degrees) so is there a consciousness, 
higher than we have heretofore imagined, in store for Man, 
which is even now beginning to manifest itself. You may then 
understand that there may be an Intelligent Faith which knows, 
not simply believes. These and other lessons you will learn in 
time. And when you have reached the stage where you feel the 



The New Thought. 17 

promptings of the Higher Reason, and live in accordance there- 
with, you will say with Carpenter : 

"Lo! the healing power descending from within, calming the 
en fevered mind, spreading peace among the grieving nerves. Lo! 
the eternal saviour, the sought after of all the world, dwelling 
hidden (to be disclosed) within each * * * * O joy insuperable." 



" LET A LITTLE SUNSHINE IN." 

The young people's song — Good "New Thought" doctrine — Plenty of 
sunshine in life, if you look for it — Don't make a dark dungeon of 
your mind — Throw open the windows of your soul — How to let a 
little sunshine in. 

The other night, just as I was dropping off to sleep, a 
crowd of young people passed along, returning from some 
social gathering. They were bubbling over with mirth 
and joy," and every girl seemed to be talking at the same time, 
the voices of the young men serving merely to punctuate the 
sentences of their fair companions. Just after they passed my 
window, some one started up a song, and the rest joined in. I 
do not know the song they sang, but the chorus went something 
like this : 

"Let a little sunshine in; 

Let a little sunshine in; 
Open wide the windows, 

Open wide the doors, 
And let a little sunshine in." 

I listened with pleasure to the words and cheerful air of the 
song and said to myself: "Well, that's good enough 'New 
Thought' doctrine for me." 

The young people went on their way singing. I, now wide 
awake, listened and thought. The song grew fainter and 
fainter as the distance between us grew greater, and at last I 
could not clearly distinguish the words they sang, but the faint 
vibrations of the tune still reached me, and I imagined that I 
could just hear the last words of the refrain : 
"Let a little Sunshine in." 

Oh, if only those young people — and all young people — and 
all people young or old — would take to their hearts these words, 
and "let a little sunshine in." It is not sufficient that you merely 
agree that the advice is good — that you merely repeat the words 
mechanically — you must make thought take form in action, and 
not only say the words — not only think them — but you must 
ACT them. Make them a part of your life — incorporate the 
idea in your being — train yourself into the habit of opening your- 



1 8 Nuggets of 

self to the sunshine of Life — get into the way of letting it flow in. 

"Let a little Sunshine in." 
There is plenty of sunshine in life, if you only look for it. 
And there is plenty of shadow in life, if you only look for it. 
But in the things that seem all shadow to others, you will be 
able to find the sunshine if you but train yourself to always 
look for it. And in that which may seem bright sunshine to 
some, others will find nothing but shade — they are troubled with a 
mental cataract that shuts out all the rays of the sunshine of life. 

"Let a little Sunshine in." 
And when yon learn to love the sunshine and look forward to 
seeing it always, you seem to draw it to you. The Law of Attrac- 
tion brings to you your share of the sunshine with which the 
world is plentifully supplied. And, if you fall into the habit 
of looking for and expecting the shadow, the shadow will always 
be found. 

"Let a little Sunshine in." 
It is astonishing what a change the Mental Attitude of the 
person will make. Change your Mental Attitude, and the whole 
world seems to change. It is like taking off the smoked glasses 
that have caused the world to seem dark and gloomy, and seeing 
the brightness and colors of the world. 

"Let a little Sunshine in." 

Many of you have been making dark dungeons of your minds. 
You have steadily shut out the sun, and your minds have become 
musty, damp and mildewed. Across the floor crawl noxious 
creatures. The slimy form of Fear drags itself slowly along, 
leaving its track behind; the hideous shape of Jealousy eyes 
you from one corner — a creature of darkness; the venomous 
reptile Hate shows its fangs ; the vampire Worry flits across the 
chamber. Fearful shapes are there glowering in the darkness 
— frightful forms crouch in corners and recesses. All is gloom, 
darkness, horror. A fit breeding place for the foul creatures 
who fear the light — a fit nursery for monsters. Look within 
the dark chambers of your mind — see what it really is — see what 
it generates. Look within — look within. Ah, you see at last. 
No wonder you shriek with terror — no wonder you turn away 
with horror. No, no, do not turn away — look and see yourself 
as you are. You need the lesson. Now that you see what you 
have been carrying around with you, and are sickened at the 
sight, start to work to remedy the evil. Throw wide open the 
doors ; throw open the windows of the soul. 
"Let a little Sunshine in." 

Ah, yes, never fear, there is plenty of sunshine in the Universe. 
Plenty for all of you. There is an infinite supply. Draw it to 
you. Take it freely. It is there for you. It is your own — 



The New Thought. 19 

your very own. It is as free as air and the material sunshine. 
There is no tariff on it. It is not controlled by any trust or com- 
bine. It is not adulterated. It is everywhere, everywhere. Ho! 
ye who are dwelling - in darkness ! Here is Life and Happiness 
for you ! Here is Peace for you ! Here is Joy for you ! Joy, 
comrades, Joy ! Open wide your windows ; open wide your doors. 

"Let a little Sunshine in." 

Yes, yes ! I hear you say that you cannot dispel the gloom 
with which you are surrounded. Nonsense. Do you not know 
that darkness is not a positive thing — it is the essence of negation. 
It is not a real thing at all — it is merely the absence of light. 
And here you have been for all these years, believing that the 
darkness was a real thing that you could not get rid of. Just 
stop for a moment and think. If a room in your house is dark 
and gloomy, do you hire a man to shovel out the darkness — do 
you attempt to do it yourself in your desire for light ? No, no, of 
course you do not. You just raise the shades, and throw open 
the shutters and the sunshine pours in and lo! the darkness has 
vanished. So it is with the gloom of the soul, the darkness of 
the miad. It is a waste of energy to attempt to dig away the 
darkness — to cast out the shadows. You'll never get light in 
that way. All that you need to do is to recognize the advantage 
of light — the fact that light is to be had — that there is plenty of 
it anxiously waiting to be let in. Then all that you need to do is to 

"Let a little sunshine in; 

Let a little sunshine in ; 
Open wide the windows, 

Open wide the doors, 
And let a little sunshine in." 



THE HUNGER OF THE SOUL. 

The soul, as well as the body and mind, requires nourishment — The want, 
a promise of the fulfillment — The law of unfoldment — Nourishment 
provided when it is needed — Provided for in the Divine Plan — The 
feast of good things. 

The Soul, as well as the body and the mind, requires nour- 
ishment. We have felt that hunger for spiritual knowl- 
edge which transcended our hunger for bread — exceeded 
our craving for mental sustenance. We have felt soul-hungry 
and knew not with what to appease it. The Soul has cried out 
for food. It has been fed upon the husks of the physical plane 
for so long that it is fairly starving for the proper nourishment. 
It seeks this way and that way for the Bread of Life and finds 
it not. It has asked this authority and that authority for in for- 



20 Nuggets of 

mation as to where this food may be had — where could be 
obtained the food that would nourish the Soul — but it has been 
given nothing but the stone of Dogma and Creeds. At last it 
sank exhausted and felt that perhaps there was no bread to be 
had. It has felt faint and weary and almost believed that all 
was a delusion and a will-o'-the-wisp of the mind — that there was 
no reality to it. It felt the chill of despair creeping over it and 
all seemed lost. 

But we must not lose sight of the fact that just as the hunger 
of the body implies that somewhere in the world is to be found 
that which will satisfy it — that just as the hunger of the mind 
implies that somewhere is to be found mental nourishment — so 
the mere fact that this soul-hunger exists is a proof that some- 
where there is to be found that which the Absolute has intended 
to satisfy it. The want is the prophecy of the fulfillment. Yes, 
and the want and its recognition afford the means of obtaining 
that which will satisfy the want. When, in the course of unfcid- 
ment either on the physical, mental or spiritual plane, it becomes 
necessary for the well-being of the unfolding Ego to draw to 
itself certain things which it requires in the process of evolution, 
the first step toward the obtaining of that necessary thing is the 
consciousness of a great and pressing want — the birth of a strong 
desire. And then the desire grows stronger and stronger, until 
the Ego becomes desperate and determines to obtain the neces- 
sary thing at any cost. The obtaining of that thing becomes 
the prime object in life. Students of evolution realize this fact 
perhaps more than the rest of us. The subconsciousness of the 
plant or animal becomes surcharged with this great desire, and 
all the conscious and subconscious power of the living thing is 
put forth to obtain that which is necessary for its development. 

And on the mental plane the same thing is true. The hunger 
for knowledge, when it once possesses a man, will cause him to 
cut loose from old environments, surroundings and everything 
else which has held him, and he forces himself to the place 
where that knowledge may be obtained — and he obtains it. If 
he only wants it hard enough he gets it. When we think of 
Lincoln in his boyhood days, painfully and laboriously striving 
for knowledge, lying on his side before the log fire and reading 
his book by the light of its flames — and this after a hard day's 
work such as only the boy on the farm knows — when we think 
of this we may understand the effects of a strong desire possess- 
ing the mind of man or boy, woman or girl. 

And this hunger for spiritual knowledge and growth, from 
whence comes it? When we understand the laws of spiritual 
unfoldment we begin to understand that the Ego is growing and 
developing — unfolding and casting off old worn-out sheaths. It 
is calling into operation new faculties — exploring new regions of 
the mind. In the super-conscious regions of the Soul are many 



The New Thought. 21 

faculties lying dormant, awaiting the evolutionary hour of mani- 
festation along conscious lines. As the faculties approach the 
hour of birth into the new plane they manifest an uneasiness 
which is communicated to the subconscious and conscious planes 
of the mind, causing a restlessness and uneasiness which is quite 
disturbing to the individual in whom they are manifesting. There 
is a straining for expression — a reaching forward for develop- 
ment — a desire for growth which produces something akin to 
pain. All growth and development is accompanied by more or 
less pain. We speak of the beautiful growth of the plant — of 
the lily — and wish that we could grow as easily and as painlessly 
as it does. But we forget that all growth means a breaking down 
— a tearing away — as well as a building up and adding to. The 
lily's growth appears painless to us, but if we were endowed with 
keen enough vision — with clear enough sight — with a power en- 
abling us to feel that which is going on within its organism, 
we would be made aware that there is a constant change going 
on — a tearing down of tissue, a using up of cells, a pressing 
upon and breaking through of confining sheaths- — all mean- 
ing growth, development and unfoldment. We see only the 
birth of the new parts and lose sight of the pain and destruction 
preceding it. All through life is manifested the "growing pains" 
of development. All birth is attended with pain. 

And so it is with the birth into consciousness of these unfold- 
ing spiritual faculties. We feel an uneasiness, dissatisfaction, 
yea, even pain, as we strive to call into conscious life these chil- 
dren of the Soul. We feel that desire for something needed by 
our inner self and we seek for it in all directions. We exhaust 
all of the pleasures of life, so-called, and find no satisfaction there. 
We then endeavor to find comfort and solace in intellectual pur- 
suits, but without obtaining that which we seek. We pore over 
the writing of the philosophers and learned writers of the past 
and present, but find them as but husks to the hungering soul. 
We seek in creeds and dogmas that comforting something, the 
need of which we feel., but of the nature of which we are ignor- 
ant — but we find no satisfaction there. We, perhaps, go from 
creed to creed, from philosophy to philosophy, from one scientific 
theory to another scientific theory, but still we hunger. At last 
we get to a position in which we feel that life is not worth the 
living and that all is a ghastly mockery. And so we go on and 
on, seeking — ever seeking — but the quest is fruitless. 

Man on the physical plane has a comparatively easy time of it. 
He lives as does the animal — he thinks as does the animal — he dies 
as does the animal. The problems of life fret him not. He 
does not even know of the existence of the problems of life. He 
is happy in his way, and it almost seems a pity that he must be 
disturbed from his state of animal content. But he must be dis- 
turbed, not by you or by me perhaps, but by the inevitable Law, 



22 Nuggets of 

which is working around and about him, and in him. Sooner or 
later in the course of his development he must be awakened. 
And he awakens upon the mental plane, and here his troubles 
begin. On the mental plane everything seems beautiful for a 
time. Man finds himself a new being and he goes on and on, 
feeling himself a very god and reveling in his intellectual powers. 
But after a time these things cease to satisfy him. The unfolding 
of the higher faculties begin to annoy him, particularly as he ^an- 
not explain them. His intellectual training has perhaps taught 
him to believe that there was nothing higher than the mind — 
that religious feelings were nothing but the result of the emo- 
tional nature and that he had outgrown all that. But still he 
feels that Something Within, never ceasing to annoy him — never 
ceasing to intrude upon his intellectual consciousness certain 
feelings entirely contrary to his theories. He has grown to 
doubt the existence of a Supreme Being, and having read Haekel's 
"Riddle of the Universe" feels that the question has been satis- 
factorily settled for all time, and that the answer to all of life's 
problems may be found in the tenets of his creed — Materialism. 

But, somehow, he is not at ease. He feels the pressure of the 
growing Something Within and becomes quite restless. This 
goes on from time to time and he seeks the Truth in all directions, 
rushing from one thing to another in his desire to satisfy the 
cravings of the Soul, but all the time denying that there is any- 
thing to be found. After a time he becomes aware of a new 
state of consciousness developing within him, and in spite of his 
mental revolts against any good thing coming from within, he 
is forced to accept himself in his growing state, and to realize 
that he may possess a Knowing other than that of the intellect. 
It may take him a long time to accept this, but so long as he 
rebels against it and struggles, so long will he feel pain. And 
only when he catches a glimpse of the true state of affairs does 
he open himself up to the Divine Unfoldment going on in his 
Soul, and joyfully welcome the tearing away of confining mental 
sheaths, which destruction enables the newly born faculty to 
force its way into the conscious mentality. He learns to even 
aid in the unfoldment by holding the thoughts conducive to 
spiritual development, and thus assists in the bringing forth of 
the new leaf or flower of the Soul. It has always been so. Man 
has gone through stage after stage of unfoldment, suffering pain 
each time as the old sheaths are burst asunder and discarded. 
He is prone to hold on to the old sheaths and to cherish them 
long after they have served their purpose in his growth. And 
it is only when he has reached the stage that many men are 
now coming into a knowledge of that he understands the process 
of growth and is willing and glad to aid in the development instead 
of attempting to oppose it. He falls in with the workings of the 
Law instead of trying to defeat it. 



The New Thought. 23 

Life is motion. We are moving onward and upward through- 
out the ages. Man has passed over miles of The Path, but he 
will have to travel many more before he sees the reason of the 
journey. But he has now reached the stage where he may see 
that it all means something — all is a part of a mighty plan — 
that this is a necessary stage of the joUrney, and that around the 
bend of the road are to be found shady trees, and a brook at 
which he may quench his thirst and wash away the dust of the 
last few miles. 

This hunger of the Soul is a real thing. Do not imagine that 
it is an illusion — do not endeavor to deny it. If you feel it you 
may rest assured that your time is coming, and that there will be 
provided that which will satisfy it. Do not waste your energy in 
running hither and thither seeking for bread. The bread will be 
provided when it is most needed. There is no such thing in Life 
as spiritual starvation. But instead of seeking without for that 
which will nourish you, look within. At each stage of the jour- 
ney the traveler will find enough to nourish him for the hour — 
enough to sustain him until he reaches the next stage. You 
cannot be denied this nourishment. It is part of the Divine Plan 
that it be provided for you. If you will look for it in the right 
place you will always find it, and will be saved much seeking and 
worrying. Do not be impatient because the feast is not set before 
you at this stage. Be satisfied with that which is given, for it suf- 
fices your needs at the present moment. By and by you will 
reach the stage when the feast of good things will have been 
earned, and you will be invited to feast and rest until you are 
ready for the next stage of the journey. 

The great spiritual wave which is now sweeping over the 
world brings with it great wants, but it also carries with it the 
means of satisfying those wants. Do not despair. 



1 
I 



24 Nuggets of 



LOOK ALOFT! 

The old sailor's advice — The warning cry — Peace and content — Mental 
balance recovered — The glory of the Universe — All governed by Law — 
The Law manifests everywhere — A reverent feeling of calm, peace- 
ful faith — Look aloft. 

I recently heard a little tale about a boy who went to sea, 
in the old days of the sailing vessel. One day he was ordered 
to go aloft, and was urged on until he reached the highest 
possible point on the mast. When he found that he could go no 
farther, he glanced down. The sight terrified him and almost 
caused him to lose his grip and fall headlong on the deck, far 
below. He felt dizzy and sick, and it seemed almost impossible 
for him to maintain his hold on the mast. Far below was the 
deck, looking so small as compared to the wide expanse of water 
on all sides of it. The motion made him feel as if he was sus- 
pended between heaven and earth, with nothing substantial to 
support him. He felt his brain reeling and his senses leaving 
him, and all seemed lost, when far away from the deck below, 
he heard an old sailor cry, ''Look aloft, lad ! Look aloft !" Turn- 
ing his eyes from the scene below the boy gazed upward. He 
saw the blue sky, the fleecy clouds passing peacefully along, look- 
ing just the same as they did when he had looked at them while 
lying on his back on the green grass of the meadows in his coun- 
try home. A strange feeling of peace and content came over 
him, and the feeling of dread, terror and despair passed away. 
His strength and presence of mind came back to him, and soon 
he was able to slide down the mast until he grasped a friendly- 
rope, thence to the lower rigging, and on until the deck was again 
reached. 

He never forgot the old sailor's advice given in the hour of 
need, and when he would feel dazed and fearful of danger, he 
would invariably look aloft until he recovered his mental balance. 

We may well take a leaf from the old sailor's note-book, and 
impress his wisdom upon our minds. There's nothing so good 
in hours of trial, doubt, sorrow and pain, as to "look aloft." When 
we feel that we cannot see clearly with our spiritual vision — that 
our spiritual sight is blurred and dim — that we lose faith and con- 
fidence, hope and courage- — that we feel the deadly sensation of 
despair and hopelessness creeping over us and benumbing our 
senses, stilling our heart — then is the time for us to listen to the 
warning shout : "Look aloft, lad ; look aloft !" 

When all seems lost — when darkness is closing around us — 
when we seem to have lost our foothold and have no way of 
regaining it — when all appears hopeless, gloomy and dreadful — 



The New Thought. 25 

when faith seems to have deserted us, and the chill of unbelief is 
on us — then is the time for us to shout to ourselves, "Look aloft — 
look aloft!" 

When we try to solve the riddle of the universe — the problem of 
existence — by the aid of the intellect, unsupported by faith. When 
we ask our intellects, "Whence come I? Whither go I? What 
is the object of my existence? What does Life mean?" When 
we travel round and round the weary path of intellectual reason- 
ing, and find that it has no ending. When we shout aloud the 
question of Life, and hear no answer but the despairing echo of 
our own sad cry. When Life seems a mockery — when Life seems 
to be without reason — when Life seems a torment devised by a 
fiend — when we lose the feeling of nearness to the Infinite Power 
that has supported us in the past — when we lose the touch of the 
Unseen Hand. These are the times for us to look upward to the 
source of Wisdom and Light. These are the times for us to heed 
the cry of the Soul : "Look aloft ; look aloft ; look aloft !" 

Some clear night, when the moon is not shining, go out into 
the darkness, and gaze upward at the stars. You will see count- 
less bright spots, each of which is a sun equaling or exceeding 
in size the sun which gives light and life to our little earth — each 
sun having its circling worlds, many of the worlds having moons 
revolving around them, in turn. Look all over the heavens, as 
far as the eye can reach, and endeavor to grasp the idea of the 
countless suns and worlds. Then try to imagine that in space, 
far beyond the reach of human vision, even aided by the tele- 
scope, are millions upon millions of other worlds and suns — 
on all sides of us, on and on and on throughout the Universe, 
reaching into Infinity. And then remember that all these worlds 
hold their places and revolve according to Law. And then re- 
member that the microscope shows that Law manifests itself in 
the smallest thing that can be seen by its use. All around you you 
will see nothing but the manifestations of Law. And then, remem- 
bering that the Infinite, which has us all in charge, takes note of 
the fall of the sparrow, what has become of your fears and doubts 
and worries? Gone is your despair and unbelief, and in their 
place is found a reverent feeling of calm, peaceful Faith. 

Aye, there is much good sense in the old sailor's maxim. "When 
you get rattled, LOOK ALOFT I" 



26 



Nuggets of 



TO-MORROW, 

The work and cares of to-day easy if we do not worry about those of 
Tomorrow — The mysterious Tomorrow and its terrors — The way to 
meet the cares of Tomorrow — Tomorrow's opportunities will come 
as surely as Tomorrow's cares — Law supreme — No need to be afraid — 
The real Tomorrow. 



The work of each day would be a pleasure if we would re- 
frain from attempting to perform at the same time the work 
of to-morrow. The cares of to-day would cease to disturb 
us, if we would refuse to anticipate the cares of to-morrow. The 
work of to-day is easily performed, notwithstanding the fact that 
we spoiled the pleasure of yesterday by fretting about the tasks 
of the coming day. The cares of to-day do not seem half so 
terrible as they appeared viewed from the distance of yesterday, 
nor do we suffer nearly as much from to-day's burdens as we did 
yesterday in bearing these burdens in anticipation. 

To-day is comparatively easy for us, but Oh, to-morrow. Aye, 
there's .the trouble — to-morrow. The past is gone, and its sor- 
rows, cares, troubles, misfortunes and work do not seem so terrible 
viewed from this distance — the misfortunes of the past are now 
often known as blessings in disguise. To-day is here, and we 
seem to be getting along fairly well — excepting fearing the dawn 
of to-morrow. But to-morrow — Oh! mysterious to-morrow — 
that delight of the child — that bugaboo of the "grown up" — 
what shall we say of to-morrow? Who knows what terrible 
monsters are lurking in its gloomy recesses — what frightful cares 
are slumbering there — what dreadful shapes are there crouching, 
with glowering eyes, awaiting our coming? No frightful tale of 
childhood begins to compare in horror with this fantasy of matur- 
ity — to-morrow. 

Yesterday, with all its troubles — to-day, with its pressing tasks 
— a fright us not, but to-morrow, ah! to-morrow. Tell us of the 
morrow ! Who knows what a day may bring forth ? Tell us how 
to meet the terrors of to-morrow ! Forsooth, an easy task, good 
friends. The way to meet the terrors of to-morrow is to — wait 
until to-morrow. 

The cares of to-morrow indeed! 'Twould be laughable if it 
were not so pitiful. To-morrow's cares may come, will come, must 
come, but what of to-morrow's opportunities, to-morrow's 
strength, to-morrow's chances, circumstances, helpers? Don't 
you know that the supply of good things does not cease with the 
close of to-day ? Don't you know that in the womb of the futuje 
sleep opportunities intended for your use when the time comes ? 
Don't you know that an earnest, confident expectation of the 



The New Thought. 2J 

good things to come wijl cause these good things to grow for your 
use in the future ? Well, it's so ; they'll grow and grow and grow, 
and then when you need them you will find them ripe and ready 
to pick. Water them with Faith; surround them with the rich 
soil of Hope ; let them receive the full rays of the sun of Love, and 
the nourishing fruit of Opportunity will be your reward — to- 
morrow. 

Did you ever shiver with dread at the thought of what would 
happen if the sun should not rise to-morrow? Did you ever doubt 
that the grass would grow and the trees take on leaves next 
Spring? Did you ever fear that perhaps the Summer would not 
come ? Oh, no, of course not ! These things have always hap- 
pened and you have sufficient faith to know that they will occur 
again. Yes, but you have been fearing that opportunities, chances, 
circumstances, may not be present to-morrow. Oh, ye of little 
faith do you not know that this is no world of chance? Do you 
not know that you are working under the operations of a great 
Law, and that these things are as much amenable to that Law as 
are the seasons, the crops, the motion of the earth, the planets, 
this and countless other solar systems, the UNIVERSE ! 

The Law which regulates the motions of the millions of worlds, 
and whose jurisdiction extends over Space — that Space the ab- 
stract idea of which cannot be grasped by the puny intellect of 
man of to-day — also takes cognizance of the tiny living organism 
too small to be seen through our strongest microscope. The spar- 
row's fall comes under the Law as well as the building of a mag- 
nificent series of solar systems. And yet, man fears to-morrow. 

Of all living beings, man alone fears to-morrow. Children, lov- 
ers and philosophers escape the curse. The first two look forward 
to it with joy and confidence, having the love that casteth out fear; 
the philosopher's reason teaches him that which the intuition of 
the other two has grasped. The child intuitively recognizes that 
the infinite supply is inexhaustible and naturally expects to-mor- 
row's supply as he does to-morrow's sun. He has faith in the 
Law, until Fear is suggested into his receptive mind by those who 
have grown old enough to fear. The child knows that "there 
are just as good fish in the sea as ever were caught," but the 
"grown-up" fears that to-day's fish is the last in the sea, and 
fails to appreciate to-day's haul by reason of his worry about the 
possible future failure of the fishing industry. 

Oh No ! I do not believe in just sitting down and folding my 
hands and waiting for "mine own to come to me." I know that 
"mine own will come to me," because I am doing well the work 
that the Law has placed before me to do — that which lies nearest 
to my hand to-day. I believe in work, good work, honest work, 
cheerful work, hopeful work, confident work. I believe in the 
joy of work — the pleasure of creating. And I believe that he who 
does his best work one day at a time working with faith, hope 



28 Nuggets of 

and confidence in the morrow, with Fear eliminated from his mind 
and replaced with Courage — I believe, I say, that such a man will 
never find his cupboard empty, nor will his children want for 
bread. 

And furthermore, I believe that to-morrow is what we make it 
by our thoughts to-day. I believe that we are sowing thought- 
seeds to-day, which will grow up over night and bear fruit to- 
morrow. I believe that "Thought takes form in Action," and 
that we are, and will be, just what we think ourselves into being. 
I believe that our minds and bodies are constantly being molded 
by our thoughts, and that the measure of man's success is deter- 
mined by the character of his thoughts. And I believe that when 
man will throw off the incubus of Fear, the frightful vision of 
the night will vanish, and, opening his eyes, in the place of the 
monster he will see the fair form and smiling face of a radiant 
creature, who, bending over him with love-lit eyes, will softly 
whisper, "I am TO-MORROW/' 



I 



The New Thought. 29 



IN THE DEPTHS OF THE SOUL. 

Stores of information ; rich mines of knowledge ; uncut gems and precious 
metal awaiting the discoverer — Psychic and spiritual faculties — Strange 
attraction of soul to soul — The Rock of Ages — The Voice of the Soul. 

Deep down in the soul are stores of information awaiting to 
be brought to the surface of consciousness. Rich mines of 
knowledge are there — uncut gems rest there awaiting the 
clay when they will be uncovered and brought into the bright light 
of consciousness — rich veins of precious metals are there awaiting 
in patience the day when some Divine Adventurer will search for 
them and bring them to light. The human mind is a wonderful 
storehouse, concealing all sorts of treasures and precious things, 
only a fraction of which have been discovered so far. 

We have faculties not yet recognized by the science of the day 
— psychic and spiritual faculties — just as real as the recognized 
faculties, playing an important part in our everyday lives, partic- 
ularly when we have been made aware of their existence. In many 
of us these faculties are scarcely recognized, and many of us 
doubt and deny their very existence. Others have a faint per- 
ception of their existence, but do not know how to use them, and 
get but the slightest benefit from them. Others have awakened 
to the wonderful faculties which are developing and unfolding 
within them, and a few have gone so far as to aid in this develop- 
ment of these higher faculties of the mind, and have been almost 
startled at the results obtained. The Orientals have their ways 
of development of these faculties, and we Occidentals have ours. 
Each best serves the purposes of the particular people using it. 

As we bring these faculties out of the realm of the super-con- 
scious into the field of consciousness, life takes on an entirely dif- 
ferent, meaning, and many things heretofore dark are seen plainly 
and understood. No one can understand the Oneness of things 
until his spiritual faculties are sufficiently developed to make him 
conscious of it. Blind belief or reliance upon the words of an- 
other will never do for the seeker after Truth that which is ac- 
complished by a single gleam of consciousness resting upon some 
of the hidden treasures of the soul. One glimpse into the depths 
of the soul will do more than the reading of thousands of books, 
the teaching of hundreds of teachers. This glimpse, once had, will 
never be forgotten. Its reality may be questioned at times — at 
other times the memory may seem dim and unreliable — but it will 
return in all its freshness and brightness, and even in the moment 
of doubt we cannot entirely escape it. 

Our real knowledge of the existence of GOD is not obtained 
from the intellect. We can take up the subject of GOD and 



30 Nuggets of 

reason about it all our life, only to find ourselves, in the end, in a 
worse muddle than when we started. And yet one single ray of 
consciousness reaching down into the depths of our inner being 
will bring to us such a complete certainty of GOD'S existence and 
being, that nothing afterward will ever shake our faith in the 
reality and existence of the Supreme Power. We will not under- 
stand the nature of his being — his existence — his power — but we 
will know that he exists, and will feel that peacefulness and in- 
finite trust in him which always come with the glimpse of the 
Truth. We will not understand any better the many theories of 
Man regarding GOD and his works ; in fact, we will be more apt 
to turn away, wearied, from Man's discussion of the subject — the 
attempt of the finite to describe and limit the infinite. But we will 
know that at the Center of things is to be found that Universal 
Presence, and we feel that we can safely rest ourselves on his 
bosom — trust ourselves in his hands. The cares, sorrows and 
trials of Life seem very small indeed when viewed from the abso- 
lute position, although from the relative position this world often 
seems to be a very hell. 

Another glimpse into the recesses of the soul reveals to us the 
Oneness of things. We see GOD as the great Center of things, 
and all the Universe as but One. The Oneness of all Life becomes 
apparent to us and we feel in touch not only with all mankind, 
but with all life. The petty distinctions of class, race, rank, caste, 
nationality, language, country fade away and we see all men as 
brothers. And we feel a kindly feeling and love toward the lesser 
manifestations of life. Even the rocks and the stones are been 
as parts of the Whole and we no longer feel a sense of separate- 
ness from any thing. We realize what the Universe is, and in 
our imagination visit the most distant stars and instinctively know 
that we would find nothing foreign to us there — all would be but 
bits of the same thing. 

And we begin to understand those strange attractions of soul 
to soul, instances of which have come to all of us. We realize that 
it is possible to entertain a feeling of love for every living creature 
— to every man or woman, the manifestations, of course, vary- 
ing in degree and kind, according to sex and closeness of soul 
relation. It makes us more tolerant and causes us to see but 
ignorance in many things in which we saw but sin before. It 
makes us feel pity rather than hate. Ah, these little glimpses into 
the inmost recesses of the # soul they teach us many new lessons. 

And one of the greatest lessons that we may acquire in this way 
is the recognition of the eternal life of the soul. We may believe, 
with greater or less earnestness, in the doctrine of the immortality 
of the soul, our beliefs and conceptions depending more or less 
upon the teachings which we have received from early childhood, 
but until we become conscious of that which lies within us, we are 
never really certain — we do not know. Many good people will 



The New Thought. 31 

deny this statement, and will say that they have never doubted 
the life of the soul after death, but see how they act. When death 
comes into their houses they mourn and cry aloud in their agony, 
and demand of GOD why he has done this thing. They drape 
themselves in mourning and mourn and weep as if the loved one 
had been destroyed and annihilated. All of their actions and con- 
duct go to prove that they have no abiding sense of the reality of 
the continuance of life beyond the grave. They speak of the dead 
as if they were lost forever — as if a sponge had been passed over 
the slate of life and naught remained. How cold and hollow 
sounds the would-be comforting words of friends and relatives, 
who assure the mourning ones that the being who has just laid 
aside the body is "better off now," and that all is "for the best," 
and all the rest of conventional expressions that we make use of. 
I tell you that one who has had a glimpse into what lies within 
him knows so well that he is eternal that he finds it impossible to 
look upon death in the ordinary way, and if he is not very careful 
he will be regarded as heartless and unfeeling for the sorrows 
of others. And he will be regarded as a fool in his views of life 
by those around him who attend church regularly every Sunday, 
and who profess a full belief in all its doctrines. If he considers 
that he himself is his soul, and that he is as much an immortal 
being now as he ever will be — that his body is but as a garment 
to cover him, or an instrument through which he manifests him- 
self — if he considers that he is in eternity now just as much as he 
ever will be ; that he cannot be destroyed by Mt. Pelee eruptions 
or railroad accidents — if, in short, he feels these things so strongly 
that they have become a part of his real everyday life — why, he 
is looked upon as "queer" by those who hear these things taught 
them every Sunday, and who would feel horrified if they were 
accused of harboring a doubt regarding them. This is one of the 
things that go to show the difference between "believing" a thing 
and "being conscious" of it. 

Now, don't run away and say that I held that the church-goers 
have no conception of the reality of the immortality of the soul, 
for I haven't said any such thing. There are many church-goers 
who have experienced a full realization of the feeling I mention, 
and there are many more church-goers who have not. And 
there are many men and women who scarcely ever enter within 
the walls of a church who have had this experience, and it means 
more to them than all the preachments they have ever listened to. 
It is not a matter of being "in-church" or "out-of-church," it is a 
matter of spiritual development, that's all. I attend churches of 
all denominations, and I find all of them good. The service of the 
Catholic Church appeals to me, and so does the meeting of some 
old-fashioned Methodist congregation. I do not accept all the 
doctrines and theories I hear in the various churches, but I manage 
to get some good out of all. If I have any preference whatever, 



32 Nuggets of 

it is for an old-fashioned Quaker meeting, where, perhaps, not a 
word is said from beginning to close, but where there is undoubt- 
edly a strong spiritual power manifested. I have even found much 
gqpd in attending a certain orthodox church, where the venerable 
preacher, who does not believe in the "higher criticism" or creed 
revision, often gives us a delightful sermon on the horrors of hell 
and the state of the damned, including the unbaptized infants. I 
can listen to a sermon like this with a thrill of delight — a feeling 
of intense joy which comes to me because I have been given the 
inward assurance that there exists a GOD who is Love, instead 
of the hating, wrathful, vengeful creature that the poor preacher 
tries to make us believe is the Infinite Power — the Universal Pres- 
ence — the Loving Father. Oh, no, I am not condemning churches 
— I like them all, and think that each one is doing the best pos- 
sible work for the particular people who are attracted to it. I 
have listened to the exercises of the Salvation Army, and have 
seen much good in it. How many of you New Thought people, 
or you high-toned church members, would make half the sacrifices 
for what you consider Truth that the Salvation Army soldier or 
the Hallelujah lassie make every day of their lives ? Stop a mo- 
ment before you laugh at them. Some of these people have more 
spirituality in their little finger than many of us have in our whole 
bodies. 

There are times when we feel disturbed and full of unrest. We 
seek to use our intellects and solve all the problems of life. We 
fret and chafe under the restrictions which have been placed upon 
us. We w r ish to KNOW all things. W T e reason this way and that 
way, follow up every lane, alley and street in the city of Thought, 
but, alas, we find not that which we seek. And in our search we 
are apt to forget that we have within us an assurance that all is 
well with the world, and with us. We rebel against the leadings 
of the Spirit — against the knowledge that has come from the inner 
self — and we want to gef our knowledge over the old channels — 
by means of the Intellect. Well, at such times we storm and fume 
and fret, and complain at our inability to solve the problem. We 
set up ideas only to tear them down again. We assume and then 
abandon one position after another, until there is nothing left. 
And the end of all the intellectual debauch is to say finally, "I do 
not know." And then, after the struggle is over, we see, just as 
plainly as ever before, the glimpse of Truth that has come to us 
from within — we hear the words of the soul — we have the same 
old consciousness. We say to ourselves, "I may not get this 
thing intellectually, but I KNOW it is true. I cannot doubt the 
voice of the Soul." 

This knowledge which comes from within is like the rock 
against which beat the storms of the sea — against which dash 
the waves which completely cover it and which hide it 
from sight, until it seems that it has disappeared for- 



The New Thought. 33 

ever from view, carried away by the attacking waves. 
The lightning flashes, the thunder rolls, the fury of the tempest 
seems concentrated against this rock, and the demon of the storm 
seems intent upon destroying every particle of it — of tearing it to 
little bits with which to strew the shores. All is darkness — all is 
blackness — all is fury, raging and terror. After hours, the storm 
subsides, and then later morning comes, and the first rays of the 
rising sun kiss lovingly the rock which has stood the fury of 
the storm, and has emerged unhurt, a witness to its superiority to 
the elements. 

Storm away, ye who would destroy this rock — dash your waves 
of Doubt, Logic, Criticism, Unbelief, Dogma, Theory, against this 
rock of the Spirit. Exert yourself to the utmost — expend all the 
force that is within you — do your best — do your worst. Tear 
and twist, pull and wrench, beat and pound, and what have you 
accomplished ? After the storm has passed away — after the clouds 
have dispersed — when the sky again is blue and the sun again is 
shining — the rock still stands, undisturbed, unchanged, unshaken. 
And stand it will for ages and ages. And Man shall begin to know 
of the stability and firmness of this rock. He will begin to realize 
just what it means to him, and he will know that while the waves 
that beat upon it are good and needful, and not to be despised, 
that only upon the rock can he safely build. 

Do not despise the intellect and its teachings, but know that ye 
have within ye another source of knowledge — that ye have spirit- 
ual faculties which are developing and which you can use. And 
trust the work of these faculties — listen to the voice of the Soul. 



34 Nuggets of 



"FORGET IT » 

Why worry about the past? — Hugging old sorrows to your bosom — What 
to do with them — Don't poison your life — Pain brings experience — 
Learning your lesson — How to get rid of a gloomy thought — Throw 
it away — Forget it. 

One can often get some useful lesson from the slang and current 
phrases of the day. There is* something particularly attractive to 
me about slang, and the pat phrases that are passed along from 
one to another on the streets. Many of these phrases condense in a 
few words certain practical truths that one could use as a basis 
for a sermon, an essay, or even a book. They are the practical ex- 
periences of the people crystallized in a catchy phrase. The phrase 
which I hear so frequently on the street just now, "Forget it," 
seems to me to contain much practical common sense, and if people 
would put it into practice there would be many more brighter faces 
— many more lighter hearts. What's the use, anyhow, of carrying 
around a long face or a heavy heart, just because away back in the 
past, something "went wrong" with us, or even if we "went wrong" 
ourselves (and most of us have — I have, I know)? What's 'the 
use ? Forget it ! 

Of course you will not forget the experiences of the past, and 
you do not want to. That's one of the things we are living for — 
gaining experience. When we have once really learned a thing 
through experience, we never forget it — it is a part of us. But 
why bother about the memory of the pain, the mortification, the 
"slip-up," the heartache, the wounded feelings, the misplaced con- 
fidence, the thing done in the wrong way, the chance you let slip 
by, the folly, the sin, the misery, the "might-have-beens," and all 
the rest. Oh what's the use? Forget it I say, forget it. 

If one is to worry about all the things that went wrong — all the 
things that didn't come right — in the past; if he has to take out 
each memory every day, and after carefully dusting it off, fondle 
and caress it, and hug it close to his bosom ; if he has to raise up 
these ghosts from the past — these phantoms of long ago — these 
musty, moth-eaten things — why he will have no time for the affairs 
of to-day. He will lose all the joy of the now — all the pleasure of 
life of the moment — all the interest in the things of to-day. Oh, 
dear, dear, what's the use ? Forget it — forget it. 

Some people are not happy unless they have some old faded sor- 
row hugged up close to their bosoms, and they feel guilty if they 
happen to smile and forget the old thing for even a moment. 
Oh, how they do gloat over their own revamped unhappiness — 
how they enjoy the relieving of the pains and sorrows, mistakes 
and ignorance of years gone by. How they love to hold the fox 



The New Thought. 35 

to their sides and let it eat out their heart. These people are really 
happy in the unhappiness, and life would not be worth living if 
they were deprived of their pet sorrows. Of course, if these peo- 
ple are really happy because they are unhappy, I have no objec- 
tion. Every man or woman has the right to pursue happiness in 
his or her own way, and I suppose that that is as good a way as 
any other, and I should not find fault if somebody else's way is 
different from mine. But doesn't it seem like a pity to see people 
wasting their time, energy, thoughts and life on these old sorrows? 
If they must think of the past, why not think of the bright things 
that came into their lives, instead of the dark ones ? Think of the 
moments of happiness, not of the moments of sorrow. Don't make 
a tomb of your mind. Don't let that particular painful experience 
poison your present life. Don't do it — don't do it. What's the 
use? Forget it. 

Every bit of pain that has happened you has brought its experi- 
ence to you — you are better, wiser and broader for it. Look at it 
in that way, and you will cease to mourn and wail and wring your 
hands over the fact that in the past you "have done those things 
which you ought not to have done, and have left undone those 
things which you ought to have done." Nonsense! You have 
gained the experience and know better now. If you were placed 
back in the same old position, and lacked the experience that you 
have gained by just such things, you would do the same old thing 
over again, and in the same old way. You couldn't help it, be- 
cause you would be the same old person. What you would like 
to do would be to be placed back in the same position, and face 
the same old temptation or problem, but you would want to take 
with you the experience you have gained by your former mistake. 
You want the cake and the penny at the same time. You want 
the experience without the pain. Oh, yes, you do, now, that's just 
what you want — I've been through it myself, and know all about 
it. You've gained the experience, be satisfied. Some day you'll 
need that experience, and will be glad you have it, and will see 
that it was worth all you've paid for it. No, you don't see it that 
way? Well, maybe you haven't had enough of it — haven't learned 
your lesson yet. If that is the case, some of these days the law will 
drop you back into the pot, until you're well done. The law is not 
satisfied with underdone people. Oh, you're making a big mistake. 
Forget it — forget it. 

The people who carry these old things around with them gen- 
erally get themselves into the mental attitude that draws other 
things of the same sort to them. Misery likes company, and a mis- 
erable thought also likes companionship, and almost always man- 
ages to attract some other miserable thing to it, to keep it from 
being lonesome. The only way to get rid of a thought of this 
kind is to — forget it. 

Now if you have some pet thing that is gnawing out your vitals 



36 Nuggets of 

— is corroding your heart — is poisoning your mind — take it out 
and look at it for the last time. Give it a last long lingering gaze. 
Kiss it good-bye. Weep over it if you like, for this is the last you 
will see of it. Then throw open the window of your mind and 
pitch it out into the outer darkness. 
FORGET IT! 



"THE KINDERGARTEN OF GOD/' 

Life a great school — Man a child learning his lesson — Preparing for 
higher grades — The game-task — What it all means — Things as they 
are — The rules wise and good — Each task means something — Greeting 
the Kindergartner. 

I see Life as a great school — Man as a tiny child, learning his 
little lessons, performing his little tasks, playing his little games, 
enjoying his little pleasures, suffering his little pains, disappoint- 
ments, trials and sorrows. 

I feel that we are in but the kindergarten stage of existence, 
learning the first lessons of Life — fitting ourselves for the grander, 
broader, fuller life in store for us. And I feel that this little kin- 
dergarten experience will continue until we have learned its les- 
sons well — have firmly grasped the principles designed for our 
baby minds. And I feel that when we have proven our ability 
to weave our little mats — build our little blocks — draw our little 
pictures — mold our little clay forms — sing our little songs — then, 
and not until then, will we pass into a higher grade, where we will 
spell out the lines of the Primer of Life, and acquire the elemen- 
tary principles of Cosmic Mathematics. And I feel that each little 
lesson must be learned, thoroughly, before the next step is taken. 
And I feel that every one of us must perform his own task — must 
memorize his own lesson — before he can gain the experience — can 
profit by the knowledge acquired in the performance of the task. 
We may be inspired by some brighter pupil — be encouraged by 
the loving sympathy of some fellow-scholar, but the task is ours 
to perform, sooner or later — and ours is the joy of accomplish- 
ment. 

I believe that as some children, even whilst fascinated by the 
game-task of the kindergarten, know that it is only a childish task 
and not the real thing of life, so may we come to a point, where, 
whilst enjoying the constantly changing play of life, we will realize 
that it is but the training for greater things, and important only 
in that sense. The perception of this fact by the child need not in- 
terfere with his interest in the game — need not prevent him from 
feeling the joy of doing, creating, working, gaining new experi- 
ences ; nor need it prevent us from playing the kindergarten games 



The New Thought. 37 

of grown-up life with a zest and interest, not alone because we 
realize that we are learning valuable lessons, but, yea, even from 
the very excitement and joy of the game itself. 

When we realize just what this view of Life means, we will find 
new pleasures in everyday life — will learn to laugh with childish 
glee at our little successes in molding the clay into the desired 
shape — in the clever weaving of the mat. And we will learn to 
smile, through our tears, if our little mat happens to tear in two 
— if our little clay sphere drops to the floor and is shattered — if 
the hour's work is destroyed. 

And we will learn our little lesson of Love — of Comradeship. 
We will learn by experience that if we lead the narrow, selfish 
life we will miss the joy that falls to the lot of those who have 
learned to express more fully the love-nature within them — we 
will find -that Love begets Love — that the love-nature, expressed, 
attracts to itself the love in the hearts of our little playmates. We 
will find that the child who carries within him the love for others, 
and expresses that love, need never want for friends or com- 
panions, need never suffer from loneliness, need never fear being 
left out in the cold. The true Personal Magnetism of the child 
(and the grown-up) consists largely of — Love, which never fails 
in its drawing power. And we will learn, from bitter experience, 
the folly of the idea of separateness from our little playmates — 
will know that the standing apart brings nothing but sorrow to us. 
We will realize that selfishness brings nothing but pain — that 
giving has its pleasures as well as receiving. And we will learn 
something of Brotherhood, and its goodness — we will have the 
True Democracy of the kindergarten impressed upon us. These 
lessons (and others) we will learn well, before passing on. 

We, like the child, often wonder what is the use of it all — fret 
over our enforced tasks — chafe at the confinement — rage at the 
restrictions, and, failing to comprehend it all, indulge in com- 
plaints, protests, rebellion. And, like the child, we cannot expect 
to understand the whyness of it all, certainly not until we pass 
beyond the kindergarten stage of existence and reach the higher 
grades. 

When one begins to realize what he is — begins to be conscious 
of the I AM — begins to know things as they are — he gradually 
learns to appreciate things at their true worth, and, although not 
released from the necessity of playing out his kindergarten game 
tasks, is able to, practically, stand aside and watch himself play 
them out. He knows that he is gaining knowledge — is mastering 
his lessons — is living-out, and out-living, his desires — is acquiring 
and storing up new experiences — but he values things only at their 
final worth, and is not deceived by the apparent value of the mo- 
ment. He begins to see things in their proper relations. He does 
not take himself (or things) too seriously. He enjoys the pleas- 
ure of the game — but he knows it to be but the play and pleasure 



38 



Nuggets of 



of the child — he laughs, but is not deceived. He suffers, also, the 
sorrow, grief, disappointment, humiliation and chagrin of the 
child-nature — but even though the tears are falling he, knowing, 
smiles. He laughs with joy — with pain he cries, but he knows — 
he knows. He enjoys the playthings, gifts, rewards, but he knows 
them for what they are — he knows. He plays the games with the 
children who do not know — and well he plays — but he knows. His 
disillusionment spoils not the sport — he plays on (for play he 
must), knowing, but enjoying. Yes, enjoying because of the 
knowing. He knows that the child-things are good — but he sees 
them as but shadows of the Good to come. He knows that he 
"cannot escape from his own good." And he knows that the Good 
is also in store for his playmates (though they know it not) and, 
being full of love, he rejoices. 

He feels that the rules of the School are wise and good, and 
that, though he cannot see it clearly now, infinite justice rules 
all, as will in the end appear. He knows that promotion will be 
gained, just as soon as earned. He knows that just as soon as 
he is able to master a task, that task will be set before him — not 
a moment before. And he knows that no task will be allotted him 
even one moment before the possibility of its accomplishment. 

He knows that he is being tested, trained and strengthened, day 
by day — that every unpleasant and disagreeable task has an im- 
portant end in view. And he knows that every task placed before 
him is in accordance with a Law that takes cognizance of his 
powers, failings, capabilities, short-comings — that understands 
him better than he does himself. He knows that the very allot- 
ment of the task is a guarantee of his ability to perform it. He 
knows that within him are latent powers, potential forces, hidden 
knowledge, which will well forth from his sub-conscious mentality 
when bidden by the Confident Expectation of Intelligent Faith. 

And, knowing these things, he is filled with Courage — and 
presses forth eagerly to the tasks of the day. And, knowing, he 
casts off all Fear, Worry, Discouragement and Discontent, and, 
with the smile of Love on his face and the joy of Faith in his heart, 
he greets THE KINDERGARTNER with Confidence and Trust. 



The New Thought. 39 



THE HUMAN WET BLANKET. 

Sees no good in anything — Expects the bad and gets it — Attracts it to 
him — Depresses everything and everyone — Carries an aura of nega- 
tive depressing thought — Clammy — Puts out the fire r of energy — Take 
warning. -. 

Did you ever meet the Human Wet Blanket ? 

To start with, he sees no good in anything. To him every man 
is a rogue — every woman a schemer trying to pull the wool over 
the eyes of some man. He looks for the Bad — expects to find it 
— and find it he does. One generally gets what he looks for. 
He attracts to him that for which he looks, and he cannot see any 
other qualities than those possessed by himself. Everyone is try- 
ing to cheat him, and out-wit him, so he thinks, and I have no 
doubt that the Law brings him a fair share of people of this 
kind. In order to prevent other people from taking advantage 
of him, he endeavors to take advantage of them in the same small 
way that he fears they will use on him. The consequence is the 
people with whom he has dealings are apt to give him a dose of 
his own medicine. He trusts no man. He's so shrewd that he 
measures off a spool of thread in order to be sure that the store- 
keeper has not robbed him of a yard or two. And the funny 
thing is, that he sets in motion the Law which causes the one 
short-measure spool in the case to fall into his hands. He just 
draws these things to him. He thinks himself a marvel of cun- 
ning, and endeavors to manifest it in petty practices, the result 
being that he attracts to himself all the little schemers, and some 
of the big ones, who happen to be within the radius of his at- 
tracting power, while the other type of people are repelled by. 
his mental attitude and thought-force. Funny, isn't it? 

Then he sees nothing but disaster ahead in any plan, and, sure, 
enough, if he gets near enough to the plan to contaminate it, 
trouble is sure to happen. As an attractor of Negative Thought 
he is a glittering success. He seems to have a positive genius for 
doing things the wrong way. And yet, he doesn't believe in the 
Attractive Power of Thought or "any such nonsense." He's too 
shrewd to take any stock in such ridiculous theories, although he 
exhibits in his life a most convincing proof of the truth of New 
Thought teachings. 

He never says "I Can and I Will," and if he hears anyone 
around him indulging in such heretical notions, he promptly pro- 
ceeds to squelch him by a few "Supposings," "Buts," "What ifs," 
and two or three gloomy shakes of the head, and a few sighs. His 
motto seems to be "There's no use trying, you can't do it." With 



40 Nuggets of 

him the country seems always to be going to the dogs, and the 
poorhouse is constantly looming up before him. 

I need scarcely add that Fear, Worry, Jealousy, and Suspicion 
are his bosom friends. He holds these thoughts constantly, and 
they and the rest of the negative brood are devouring him. They 
are making their home in his mentality and are increasing rapidly, 
besides frequently inviting their friends for a visit. 

Of course, it's nobody's business if he likes this sort of thing, 
but it is not pleasant to come in contact with him. He is sur- 
rounded with an aura of negative, depressing, gloomy, thought- 
force, which is manifest to all with whom he comes in contact. 
Turn him loose in a roomful of cheerful people, and in a few 
minutes the conversation has lagged, the warmth of love and 
friendship has disappeared and things begin to feel damp and 
chilly, and someone will begin to make inquiry regarding the fur- 
nace or the steam radiators, and wondering why the janitor does 
not keep up the fire on such a day. Approach him when you feel 
fired with energy, ambition and push — when you feel that you can 
go out and conquer any obstacle — and you will feel the clammy 
wet blanket thrown over you, putting out your fire of energy, and 
in a" moment or two you will wonder "What's the use." That is, 
unless you understand your business, and know how to throw off 
the influence of the negative thought-waves emanating from this 
man. Look out for him. 

From the bottom of my heart, I pity this man and his kind. He 
gets none of the sweet things of Life — he doesn't see them lying 
around. He misses the joy of living. He sees everything 
through jaundiced eyes. He knows nothing of the happiness of 
the clear head, warm heart, and brotherly hand. He is so occu- 
pied in looking for the spoiled fruit on the ground that he does 
not see the perfect fruit on the branches above his head, begging 
to be picked. He is so much engrossed in the mud upon the road, 
that he does not see the bright blue sky above his head ; the beau- 
tiful landscape ; the children playing on the grass ; the mother 
nursing her babe; the old couple trudging along hand in hand. 
These things do not exist for him. His mind is so full of Fear, 
Suspicion, Distrust, and Petty Spite, that Love finds no room. 
But even this is Good — for many find their way to Optimism only 
by first sinking to the depths of extreme Pessimism. They reach 
the Celestial City by the road that winds through the Valley of 
the Shadow of Death. Even these things shall pass away. 

All's well. 



The New Thought. 41 



AIM STRAIGHT. 

Fear attracts, as well as Desire — Learn to aim straight and aim at the 
right thing — Examples — The bowler — The bicyclist and the car — The 
bicyclist and the post — The boy and the marbles — Wisdom from the 
babe — Look straight; Think straight; Shoot straight. 

A strong Desire or a strong Fearthought is an aim at the thing 
desired or feared. Amd in proportion to the degree of Desire or 
Fear, will we be carried toward the thing at which we aim. Con- 
fident Expectation is manifested in a Fearthought as well as in an 
earnest Desire, and when we confidently expect a thing to happen 
we are carried toward it by an irresistible force. It may seem 
strange to you to hear that Fear is akin to Desire, but this is the 
truth. It matters not whether we call it Desire or Fear, the gist 
of the matter lies in the Confident Expectation. A faint Hope 
and a lurking Fear have about the same attractive force — a Desire 
coupled with a firm belief in its realization attracts strongly, but 
no more strongly than does a Fear coupled with a feeling of cer- 
tainty of its realization. The thing upon which your Thought is 
firmly fixed or drawn toward, will be the thing you will realize. 
Therefore Aim Straight. 

We have heard much of the Attractive Power of Thought as 
applied to Desire. I will now say something to you about the 
same force called into operation by Fearthought. It is far more 
pleasant for me to speak of the bright side of the question, but I 
would be neglecting my duty toward you if I failed to direct your 
attention to the reverse of the shield. When you thoroughly real- 
ize that Thought- force works both ways, you will know how to 
handle it, and will understand many things that have heretofore 
been dark to you. You will learn to AIM STRAIGHT, but will 
also learn to be careful at what you aim. You will learn to avoid 
the aim inspired by Fear, and will hereafter use all your energies 
to pointing your mental arrow at the bull's-eye of Happiness and 
Success. 

Let us take a few facts from the physical plane in order to illus- 
trate things as they are on the mental plane of effort. Life has its 
correspondences on all its planes, and by taking examples from 
one plane, we will be able to more readily understand the work- 
ings of the Law on other planes. 

Some time ago, I was talking to a number of people about this 
subject, and gleaned from each an illustration of the workings of 
the Law of Attraction on the physical plane. And each example 
although on the physical plane, showed the power of Mind behind 
it. I will tell you what some of these people said, and you can 
see for yourself just what I mean. 



42 Nuggets of 

The first man was a printer, who after hours spent much time 
in bowling, and who was looked upon as an expert in that game. 
He said that some time before he was playing a game, and at a 
critical point when he was taking aim and endeavoring to put the 
ball in between the i and 2 pins (a specially advantageous shot), 
his opponent spoke up and said "Just watch him hit the 4 pin." 
I do not know anything about bowling, but it seems that to hit 
the 4 pin is about the worst thing that can happen to a bowler, 
outside of missing the pins altogether. Well, to go on with the 
story, with the remark of his rival, Fearthought entered the mind 
of the printer, and he couldn't get the 4 pin out of his mind. He 
kept on looking at the place he wanted to hit, but his mind was on 
the 4 pin, and he feared that he would hit it. To use his own 
words, he "got rattled," and away went the ball striking the 4 pin 
fair and square. He concluded the story by saying: "And so 
instead of making a 'ten strike' I got only a 'split.' " Maybe you 
understand those terms better than do I, but at any rate you will 
see what a Fearthought brought to this typographical bowler in 
his little game of ten-pins. Moral : When you wish to place the 
ball Energy between the 1 and 2 pins of Life, don't allow Fear- 
thoughts to switch you off to the 4 pin, thereby giving you a 
"split" instead of the coveted "ten-strike." 

Another friend told me that, a few days before, he had been 
riding on the front bench of a grip-car on a Chicago cable-line. 
Hearing the gripman break into the vernacular in a vigorous style, 
he looked up, and saw a colored man on a bicycle trying to cross 
the track "on the bias," as the girls say, just ahead of the car. 
There was plenty of time — plenty of room — for the man to get 
across, but when he reached the middle of the track Fearthought 
got hold of him, and in spite of himself his wheel turned and he 
headed straight for the car. He headed straight for the gripcar, 
just as if he had aimed at it, and the next moment he went "bang 7 
right into it. He escaped injury, but his wheel was wrecked. 
When asked about it, he said that from the moment he got afraid 
of the car his wheel "ran away with him," right into the thing he 
Feared. Moral : Keep your mind fixed on the thing you want — 
not on the thing you don't want. 

Another man, to whom I related the story of the man on the 
wheel, said that he had the same trouble when he was learning to 
ride the wheel. He was getting along pretty well and could man- 
age to steer half-way straight, although in a wobbly manner, until 
one day he happened to see a certain telegraph pole in front of the 
place where he was learning to ride. The pole seemed to hypno- 
tize him, and from that day he couldn't keep his front wheel away 
from it. He couldn't keep away from that pole — he was afraid of 
it. The pole seemed to have magnetic qualities and the result 
was "Bump." He remounted, over and over again, but the result 
was the same. At last he made up his mind that he was going to 



The New Thought. 43 

get ahead of that pole somehow, and he mounted the wheel with 
his back toward the pole (but his Mind was still on it) and lo! 
the front wheel described a semi-circle, and back to the pole he 
went. Moral : Don't let a pole hypnotize you with Fearthought 
— keep your Mind on the place to which you wish to go. 

But the best example was given by a boy who had kept his eyes 
open and his thinker working. Maybe I had better tell you in his 
own words. This is what he said, just as he said it: 

"Oh, pshaw!" said the Boy, "you're making a big fuss over 
nothing. Every feller knows that you've got to think about a 
thing if you want to hit it, and if you think about the wrong 
thing, why, you'll hit the wrong thing. If I fire a stone at a tin 
can, why, I just look square at the can and think about the can for 
ali I'm worth, and the can's a dead one, sure. If I happen to let 
my mind wander to the cat what's on the shed over to the left of 
the can — well, so much the worse for the cat, that's all. To shoot 
straight, you've got to aim straight; and to aim straight you've 
got to look straight; and to look straight you've got to think 
straight. Every kid knows that, or he couldn't even play marbles. 
If I get my heart set on a beauty marble in the ring, I just want 
it the worst way and says I to myself, 'You're my marble.' Then 
I look at him strong and steadylike and don't think about nothing 
else in the world but that beauty. Maybe I'm late for school, but 
I clean forget it. I don't see nothing — nor think nothing — but 
that there marble what I want. As the piece in my reader says, 
it's my 'Heart's Desire,' and I don't care whether school keeps 
or not, just so as I get it. Then I shoot, and the marble's mine. 
And, at school, when our drawing teacher tells us how to draw a 
straight line, she makes two dots, several inches away from each 
other. Then she makes us put our pencils on the first dot and 
look steady at the other and move our pencil towards it. The more 
you keep thinking about the far off dot, and the less you think 
about the starting dot or your hand, the straighter you're going to 
get your line. Wonst I looked straight at the far-off dot with my 
eyes, but I kept thinking about a red-headed girl on the other side 
of the room, and what do you think, the line I was drawing 
slanted away off in her direction, although I had kept my eyes 
glued on the far-away dot and never even peeped in the kid's 
direction. That shows, sure, that it's the thinking as well as the 
looking. See ?" 

All of the examples above given contain within them the princi- 
ples of a mighty truth — a working illustration of a great law of 
Life. If we are wise we will profit by them. Manv things are 
happening around us every day, from which we might gain les- 
sons if we would only think a little, instead of playing "follow my 
leader" and acceoting other people's thought, ready made. We 
have gotten so accustomed to these "hand-me-down" thoughts, 
that we have almost forgotten how to turn out thoughts for our- 



44 Nuggets of 

selves. The day has come when we are required to do a little 
thinking on our own account, instead of humbly bowing before 
moth-eaten Authority perched upon a crumbling base. The time 
has arrived when we must strike out for ourselves, .instead of fol- 
lowing a musty Precedent which has "seen better days." This is 
the age of the Individual. This the time for the "I" to assert 
itself. 

I wish you would pay attention to what the Boy said. It is 
not the first time that we have gone to the babe for wisdom. Al- 
though a child has an imagination beyond our comprehension, he, 
at the same time, is painfully and even brutally, matter of fact. 
He is continually asking : "Why," and when we grown-ups are 
unable to answer him he answers the question himself, often bet- 
ter than we could have done. He doesn't theorize, but gets down 
to business, and works things out for himself. This boy knew all 
about the Thinking part of the problems, and had put it into prac- 
tical application, while we were theorizing about it. He had dis- 
covered that in order to get things we must first earnestly Desire 
them ; then Confidently Expect that we would get them ; then go 
to work to procure them. That's the true philosophy of getting 
things. He tells us, about the marble, that he first "wanted it 
the worst way" and "didn't care whether school kept or not" just 
so he got the marble. Then he "looked strong and steady-like" 
at the marble, saying: "You're my marble." Then he shot, and 
the marble was his. Can any of you describe the process of get- 
ting things better than this? If we grown-ups would only put 
into our daily tasks the interest and attention that the boy put into 
his game of marbles, we would "get the marble" oftener than we 
have been doing. 

Of course, it may be true, that the principal joy is in the getting 
of things rather than in the possession of them — that the Game of 
Life is like the game of marbles in that respect, but what of that? 
That needn't spoil the game. The boy knows enough to enjoy 
playing for a few marbles that may be obtained for a penny-a- 
fistful at the corner store — but that fact doesn't bother him at all. 
He knows that when he gets the marble it will not seem half so 
beautiful in the hand as it did in the ring — but he gets ready to 
shoot for the next one with just as much zest and enjoyment. 
He finds a joy in Living; Acting; Doing; Expressing; Growing 
and Outgrowing, Gaining Experiences. Take a lesson from the Boy 
—while you are in the Great Game, take a boy's interest in it ; play 
with a zest; play your level best, and get the marble. The Boy 
instinctively knows that the joy of life consists of Living, while 
we poor grown-ups vainly imagine that our .pleasure will come 
only in the trophies of the game — the glass-marbles of Life — and 
look upon the playing of the game as drudgery and work imposed 
upon us as a punishment of the sins of our forefathers. The boy 
lives in the Now, and enjoys every moment of his existence — his 



The New Thought. 45 

winnings, his losings, his victories, his defeats, while we, his elders 
and superiors in wisdom groan at the heat of the day and the 
rigor of the game and are only reconciled to our tasks by the 
thought of how we will enjoy the possession of the marbles, when 
we get them at the end of the game. The Boy sucks his orange 
and extracts every particle of its sweet contents, while we throw 
away the juicy meat and aim only to secure the pips. Oh, yes! 
the boy not only knows how to "get there," but he has also a sane 
philosophy of Life. Many of us grown-ups are now re-learning 
that which we lost with our youth. 

You will notice that the bowler, the bicyclists and the others, got 
what they didn't want, because they were afraid of it, and allowed 
it to distract their thoughts from the object of their Desire. To 
Fear a thing is akin to Desiring it — in either case you are at- 
tracted toward it, or it to you. It's a rule that works both ways. 
You must think about the Thing you Want — not about the Thing 
you Don't Want, for the thoughts you are thinking are the ones 
that are going to take form in action, as the Boy said : "You've 
got to think about a thing if you want to hit it, and if you think 
about the wrong thing, why, you're going to hit the wrong thing." 
Watch your Ideal, not your Bugbear. Concentrate on your Ideal 
— fix your thought and gaze upon it, like the boy upon his marble 
— and don't allow Fearthought to sidetrack you. Select the thing 
you want to be, and then grow steadily into it. Pick out the 
thing you want, and then go straight and steadily to it. Replace 
your old whine : "I Fear," with the New Thought shout : "I Can, 
and I Will." Then you will experience an illustration of 
''Thought taking form in Action." 

Look Straight ; Think Straight ; Shoot Straight ; in these three 
things lie the secret of Success. 



46 Nuggets of 



AT HOME, 

Don't be afraid — You are at home — Not here by chance — You belong here — 
YOU are the soul — YOU cannot be hurt — YOU cannot be banished — 
YOU are right in the universe, and there is no outside — Great things 
are before you — Make yourself at home. 

Don't be afraid. You're living in your own home. This Uni- 
verse was built for you to inhabit — to occupy — to enjoy. Do not 
feel strange — make yourself at home. The wonderful laws of 
nature — those which have been discovered, and those which re- 
main to be discovered — are all laws for your use, when you grow 
large enough to understand how to make use of them. 

Did you think you were here by chance, or that you were an 
alien. If so, learn better. You are to the manor born — you are 
the heir. Everything around the place is for your use, when you 
grow up. No one can dispossess you — no one can put you out. 
You are at home. 

Do you long for another home ? Do you fret and chafe at the 
trials and troubles of this world, and imagine that somewhere else 
things will be better ? Well, they'll never be better for you until 
you have met and conquered the trials and troubles of this place. 
You are just where you belong. You are surrounded with just 
the things you need. You are getting just what you deserve. 
And until you learn the truth of this, you will have the same sur- 
roundings — the same environments. And then when you learn 
that the things around you are all right — that you are being treat- 
ed justly — that you are getting just what you have attracted, and 
are attracting, to yourself — then you will be ready for the next 
step in the journey, and you will have new surroundings and new 
environments — new tasks — new lessons — new pleasures. 

I hear some of you talking about Death. You seem to think 
that you will be another order of being as soon as you take your 
last breath upon earth. You talk about being a "spirit," bye-and- 
bye. Do I believe this? Of course, I believe it. I know it. 
But I also know something else, and that is that you are a spirit 
now, just as much as you will be in another world. Did you think 
that some wonderful essence was going to grow from you, and 
that that essence would be what you call a spirit ? Nonsense ! 
YOU are the spirit, and the not-you part which will be discarded 
never was you. The You which says I AM is the real thing — 
the real self — and the rest of you is but tools and instruments 
which YOU are using. Why can't you see this ? You talk about 
"my soul," "my spirit," and so on. You make me tired. Why, 
the thing which is thinking and speaking — YOU — is the "soul" 
or "spirit" of which you are talking. You talk as if the physical 






The New Thought. 4? 

part of you, which is changing continually, was you. You are 
like the boy with the old knife. He was continually having the 
knife repaired. He had had seven new blades and three new 
handles put en it, and yet it was the same old knife. Why, you 
could step right out of your body (and maybe you do, more than 
you have any idea of) and it would be the same old YOU. You 
could discard your body just as you do your clothes, and yet YOU 
would be the same individual. There is a wonderful difference 
between individuality and personality. One you cannot get rid 
of ; the other may be changed. 

What's the use in being afraid? Nobody can hurt the real 
YOU. You cannot be wiped out of existence. If a single spirit 
atom should be destroyed, the entire structure would smash up. 
You cannot be banished from the Universe, for there's nowhere 
else to put you. You cannot get outside of the Universe, for 
there's no outside. There's no place for you outside of every- 
where. 

And you talk about time and eternity. Why, you're in eternity 
right now. You are right in it this moment. It is always to-day — 
to-morrow never comes. And you are right at home in the Uni- 
verse, and always will be. You are always there, for there's no- 
where else to go. 

So what's the use in being afraid ? Who's going to hurt you ? 
They can't kill YOU. They can't put you out of existence. They 
cannot expel you from the Universe. So what are they going to 
do about it anyhow? And, after all, who are "They?" You 
talk as if there were outside forces and influences antagonistic to 
you. Outside of what? No matter what beings of earth or air 
there may be, they are creatures like yourself. They are all a 
part of the Whole Thing — all made of the same material — all 
come from the hand of the same maker — you are all cut from the 
same piece of goods. The apparent differences are illusions — the 
difference and separateness is only relative, and not actual. 

So, make yourself at home. Take a look around and see what 
a nice bit of the Unhorse you have to live in. Some of your fam- 
ily have been trying to occupy the whole house instead of only 
their share of it, but those things are gradually working out, and 
all will be better within a comparatively short, time. This is going 
to be a better world to live in when men take time to think a 
little. And you'll be around to enjoy it when it comes — never 
fear. You cannot get away, even if you want to. 

And, whats' the use of waiting for to-morrow. There's lots of 
things in which you can find happiness to-day, if you will only 
stop worrying about to-morrow. The little child knows more 
about enjoying life than you do. The little child feels at home 
anywhere and starts in to enjoy it, and get the most out of it, 
until he grows old enough to be hypnotized by the race belief. 

You are at home here. Just as much at home as is the fish 



4« 



Nuggets of 



in the sea — the bird in the air. Realize this, and make the most of 
it. Stop being afraid. Stop fretting. Stop worrying. Realize 
that yesterday, to-day, and to-morrow, you are here in the Uni- 
verse. It's a good Universe, and it grows better as man grows in 
wisdom to take advantage of its goodness. And it is not yet "sun- 
up" here. Great things are before us. And you will see them 
and take part in them. Make yourself at home, for you're going 
to be around here for some time. 



THE SOLITUDE OF THE SOUL. 



Lorado Taft's group — Description — Each stands alone — Each is in touch 
with every other — Soul communion in silence — Silence is the sanc- 
tuary of the soul — The oneness of life and its apparent separateness — 
The message. 

In one of the rooms of the Art Institute, in Chicago, stands a 
remarkable group, by Lorado Taft, the sculptor, entitled "The 
Solitude of the Soul." The average visitor stops a moment and 
passes on, commenting on the beauty of the figures composing 
this group. A few hurry past, afraid to look at the figures, for 
they are nude — as naked as the human soul before the gaze of 
its Creator. (Some people are afraid of things not hidden by 
draperies — even the naked Truth shocks them.) But the man or 
woman who thinks and understands — stops long before this 
group, conscious that it tells the tale of a mighty truth. 

Around a large rock, stand four human figures — two men and 
two women. They are so placed that but one figure is in full 
sight from any given point of view, although the connection be- 
tween any figure and the two on each side of it may be seen. It 
is necessary to walk completely around the group to see the idea 
of the sculptor — to read the story that he has written into the 
marble. 

Each figure has an individuality. Each stands alone. And yet 
each is in touch with the one behind, and the one before. Each 
one is connected with all, yet each one stands alone. One figure 
extends a hand to her brother just ahead of her, and on her 
shoulder rests the tired head of the brother following her. Hand 
in hand, or head on shoulder stand they, each giving to the other 
that human touch and contact so dear to the soul craving that 
companionship of one who understands. 

Each face shows sorrow, pain, and longing — that longing for 
that complete union of soul with soul — that longing that earth-life 
cannot satisfy. And each feels and knows that the other has the 
same longing. And each gives to the other that comforting touch 
that says "I know — I know." Each face shows a great human 



The New Thought. 49 

love mingled with its pain. Each face shows resignation mingled 
with its grief. It is the old story of human love and human limit- 
ations. It is also a story of deeper import — the story of the 
soul. 

Every lip is closed. Each man and woman is silent. And yet 
each understands the other. Soul is communing with soul, in the 
Silence. And in the Silence alone can soul converse with soul. 
Words cheapen the communication of soul to soul. With those 
who understand us well, we can best commune in Silence. Hand 
in hand — cheek to cheek — sit those who love well. The tale of 
love is told and re-told without a word. Words serve their pur- 
pose in conveying the commonplaces of life, but seem strangely 
inadequate to express the deeper utterances of the soul. The tale 
of love — the story of sorrow — needs no words. The soul under- 
stands the message of the soul — mind flashes the message to mind 
— and all is known. The fondest memory of the one whom you 
loved and lost, is not of moments in which he spoke even the most 
endearing words. The memory most sacred to you is that of 
some great Silence lived out with the loved one — some moment in 
which each soul drew aside its veil and gazed with awe into the 
depths of the other soul. Silence is the sanctuary of the soul. 
Enter it only with due reverence. Uncover the head — tread 
softly. 

Each figure stands alone, and yet in touch with all the rest. Each 
is apparently separate and yet each is but a part of the whole. 
Each feels the frightful solitude which comes to the soul when 
first it recognizes what it is. And yet, in that dreadful moment 
each knows itself to be in touch with all of life. Each feels that 
intense longing for a closer soul union — a reunion of the separated 
parts of the whole. And yet each realizes the impossibility of 
the consummation of that desire at this time — and they show their 
grief — they place the head upon the shoulder of the other — they 
clasp the hand of the other — they touch the flesh of the other — all 
as a symbol of the desire for the union of the soul. 

This group is a symbol of the oneness of life and its apparent 
separateness. A picture of the in-touchness of each part of the 
whole, with every other part. A story of the pain of the soul in 
its awful solitude — of its impotent striving for at-one-ment. A 
representation of the communion of soul with soul, in the Silence. 
A tale of the comfort and joy in the presence of another human 
form. A message of The Brotherhood of Man. All this — and 
more — is in this group. 

I wonder if the sculptor saw it all, or whether he chiseled bet- 
ter than he knew. Sometimes the Divine in man causes him to 
write better — paint better — cut better — than he realizes. Others 
see much more in his essays, stories, poems, paintings, statuary, 
than the maker knew was there. And the man himself, after 
years have past again views his work, and wonders at the new 



50 Nuggets of 

story he reads there. He feels dazed at having portrayed truths 
of which he dreamt not while he worked. There are within us 
unexplored depths, of the existence of which we do not dream. 
And from these depths, now and then, rise into our consciousness 
beautiful thoughts — beautiful images — which we reproduce on 
paper — canvas — marble. We do not understand these things, and 
we join with others in the feeling of wonder inspired by the sight 
of the reproduction of that which came from 1 the depths of our 
mental being. And some, who have grown closer to the Real 
Self within them, see beauties in our work to which we are blind. 
Not until the scales fall from our eyes, do we realize the full mean- 
ing of our work. 

Some call this Inspiration. But those who have pierced the veil 
know that it is inspiration from within, not from without. It is 
the voice of the Divine spark within man, whispering to the con- 
sciousness which is struggling to know better that Higher Self — 
a whisper of encouragement and good cheer — a portent of the fu- 
ture — a glimpse of the distant light — a bestowal of a few crumbs 
from the table of the Spirit. 

I know not, I say, wtiether Lorado Taft knew what he chiseled. 
I know not whether he is a man of deep spiritual insight. But 
this I do know, that this group, "The Solitude of the Soul" is the 
work of the Spirit within this man. And his work carries a deep 
spiritual message to those who are ready to receive it. And in 
years to come this message will be understood by thousands, for 
everyone who receives it today. This work shall live long after its 
maker has forsaken the earthly body that he now uses as an in- 
strument. It will live because it carries a message — because it 
conveys a mightv truth. 



The New Thought. 51 



JERRY AND THE BEAR. 

The Law's plan of developing an individual — Folly of clinging to old 
worn out sheaths — The story of Jerry and the Bear — Who Jerry was — 
He meets the Bear — The fight — The result — The consequences — The 
change in Jerry — The moral. 

The Law, in its efforts to develop Man into a self-reliant being 
— into an individual — first tries the simpler plan of bringing a 
steady pressure to bear in the direction of gradual progress and 
growth, impelling the man to think and act himself into a more 
positive condition each day. After a while the man, feeling behind 
him the steady push of Life, and being conscious of the attracting 
power of the Absolute drawing him to higher things — leading 
him up the mountain path of Attainment — learns to trust the pro- 
pelling and attracting power, and, ceasing his resistance, moves 
along in the direction of gradual unfoldment and growth. He 
casts' off sheath after sheath — and grows. He does not attempt 
to impede or interfere with his devlopment, but cheerfully and joy- 
fully presses forward to his unfoldment. He finds pleasure in each 
stage, and should pain manifest itself he knows it as the growing 
pains of the child — a promise of greater things. 

There are some, however, who seem determined to cling to 
their old sheaths, and resist the pressure of growth to the utmost. 
They are unable to withstand the steady pressure, and the at- 
tracting power, carrying them forward, and their resistance brings 
them much pain and friction, and they are pushed this way and 
that by the pressure of the growing Self, resisting and struggling 
all the time. The Law has several ways of dealing with these 
people, for their own good, and often, with a supreme effort, tears 
them from the surrounding sheath to which they are clinging and 
forces them into a broader and wider life, against their wishes 
and in spite of their struggles and cries. 

Many of us, looking back over our past lives, smile as we recog- 
nize how we were forced into new fields of work and endeavor — 
how we were broadened out in spite of ourselves — how we were 
torn from our old surroundings and environments, in spite of our 
lamentations, reproaches, and cries, and placed amid new scenes 
and faces. This thing is repeated over and over again, until we 
learn the lesson and cease to be unduly attached to persons and 
things, and become willing to yield ourselves to the onward mov- 
ing force and co-operate with the Law instead of opposing it. 

Many men and women who steadily refuse to stand erect and 
assert their independence, are deliberately worked into a position 
where they must declare their freedom from the things upon 
which they have been leaning, and are forced to stand up and face 



52 Nuggets of 

conditions from which they have shrunk all their lives. The Law 
has a way of picking up those shivering mortals who stand 
around the river's edge, and throwing them into the stream, bid- 
ding them to strike out and SWIM. It prefers the easier way of 
teaching you to swim by degrees — of acquiring knowledge by easy 
stages — but if you refuse to learn in this way, it will resort to the 
vigorous plan just mentioned — but swim you must, one way or 
the other. 

I am going to tell you a story — not a particularly pretty one, 
but one that will give you an idea of what I mean, and how the 
plan works. It's about animals — but many a truth has been con- 
veyed by fables in which animals were the actors, and this homely 
little tale from the wilderness may convey to your minds the point 
of this talk better than do my words. Here's the story : 

Once upon a time a man, away up in one of the Northwestern 
States, owned a dog named "Jerry." He was not very much on 
looks — and less in good qualities. He was not of any fancy breed 
— just Dog, that's all. He had drifted on to the farm from Some- 
where and had been kicked and cuffed around in his early youth, 
until he was afraid to claim a right to live at all. He grew up 
into a worthless animal — snapped at by smaller dogs — bullied 
by those of his own size — looked down upon by all. He expected 
to be kicked by everybody in sight — and, of course, got kicked. 
(Men and dogs who go around expecting to be abused, always 
draw upon them the thing they fear and expect.) His tail seemed 
a magnet which attracted all the tin cans around that neighbor- 
hood. Pitying did not seem to do him any good — it only made 
him more miserable and abject than ever, just as it acts in the 
case of some people. The poor chap gradually dropped down to 
the lowest state of dogdom, and his case seemed hopeless. The 
farmer would drive to town every once in a while, and Jerry 
would sneak along under the wagon, in manner seeming to apolo- 
gize for taking up even that space. His appearance would be 
the signal for all the dogs of the several farms along the road to 
chase down to the wagon, rout him out, and roll him over in the 
dust, the performance being repeated at every farm to and from the 
town. The farmer, at last, feeling that the dog was bringing his 
establishment into disrepute, and knowing that "Hopkins' Jerry" 
was becoming a township jest, determined to put an end to the 
animal's unhappy career. But Destiny intervened — possibly in 
order to give me a tale to point the moral of this talk — and to give 
you something to remember in trying circumstances. 

Jerry strayed away from the farm one evening, being chased a 
part of the distance by some of the smaller dogs who delighted 
in bullying him. He traveled some distance from home and en- 
tered the woods. Bear tracks had been discovered in that region, 
and some of the boys had dug a pit, baiting it with some choice 
tid-bit pleasing to his bearship, and covering it over with a thin 



The New Thought. 53 

roof which would yield to a light weight. Jerry started across 
the roof, and in he went. Some hours after a young bear came 
sniffing around, and he, too, dropped in the pit. Then the trouble 
commenced. 

The bear feeling infuriated by his unceremonious drop, reached 
out for Jerry and gave him a scratch which caused him to yell. 
The bear, seeing that there was no fight in his opponent, chased 
him round and round the pit, until it seemed only a matter of a 
few minutes more until the dog would be relieved of his misery. 
Things took an unexpected turn, however. The bear knocked 
Jerry over on his back, and began giving him the finishing 
touches. This seemed to bring to life the last remaining touch of 
self-respect left in the poor brute, and with a mighty effort he 
sprang straight at the bear's throat and gave him abite in which was 
concentrated all the repressed bites of a lifetime. The bear, with a 
roar, sprang back to the other side of the pit. It was hard to tell 
which was the most surprised of the two, the bear at the sudden 
courage of his opponent, or Jerry at the fact that he could fight 
bear. The dog's self-respect and confidence went up nearly to 
par. The bear's caution adjusted itself accordingly. After a bit 
the bear cautiously worked his way over toward Jerry, but the 
dog snarled fiercely and showed his teeth. They had several 
rounds before things quieted down, and each time Jerry showed 
his mettle, and although he was badly scratched he had bestowed 
upon the bear several tokens of his valor. His self-respect and 
confidence was now an assured thing, and the bear treated him 
with considerable deference and consideration. After matters 
adjusted themselves, the bear and the dog each retired to their 
respective sides of the pit, and declared a truce. 

In the morning the boys came to the pit, shot the bear and 
lifted Jerry out and carried him home. His tail was several 
inches shorter, and one ear was missing, and his body was 
scarred and scratched like the face of a Heidelberg student, 
but away down in his heart he felt good — and he showed it. The 
farmer, feeling proud of the animal, carefully nursed him until 
he was able to move around the house, and then allowed him to 
go out of doors. As soon as he appeared the other dogs made 
a rush for him, but something in his look caused them to keep 
at a safe distance, and they contented themselves with barking at 
him and keeping out of reach. He did not seem anxious to 
fight, but he had that look of confidence in his eyes that kept 
them where they belonged. He had ceased to fear. His tail no 
longer drooped between his legs, but was held aloft as is the 
tail of every self-respecting dog. And somehow, that tail did not 
have the attracting power for tin cans that had formerly marked 
it. The boys recognized that Jerry had advanced in the scale, 



54 



Nuggets of 



and there was something about him that they liked and re- 
spected. 

About ten days after the dog got well, the farmer took a trip 
to town, and Jerry accompanied him, trotting along in an un- 
concerned manner, alongside, behind, or any other place that 
suited him. As the first farmhouse was reached the dogs came 
rushing down to have some fun with our friend. They pitched 
into him as of yore. Something happened. The pack ran yelp- 
ing back to the house for surgical attention — and Jerry trotted 
on just the same. This scene was repeated at every farm along 
the road, Jerry repeating the object lesson each time, finishing 
up his task by rolling into the dust the big bull terrier in front 
of the postoffice, who, heretofore, had been the terror of the 
town. The homeward trip was a triumphal progress for the 
dog, and all his old foes vied with each other in tail-wagging 
and other demonstrations designed to let Jerry know that they 
were proud to be his friends. But he paid little attention to 
them — he had developed into a canine philosopher. After that 
he led a happy life. He was not seeking fight, but no boy or 
dog seemed to seek fight with him. He had cast out Fear- 
thought. He feared nothing that walked on legs. HE HAD 
MET BEAR. 

Now, some of my critics will call the attention of their readers 
to the fact that I am advising fight. Not so, good friends* I 
am using this dog story as an illustration, and am trying to 
show you how the Law will sometimes force a man into tight 
quarters in order to bring out his courage and self-confidence. 
It knows the man "has it in him," and it proceeds to use vigorous 
methods to bring it out into action providing, always, that the 
man has not developed it before. When a man has 
been placed in a position where he faces the worst, and 
is compelled to grapple with the bear, he finds that he has reserve 
force within him of which he never dreamt before, and he puts 
forth all his energy to save himself. He finds that when he 
boldly faces the difficulty the difficulty seems as much afraid of 
him as he had been of it. He gains more confidence, until at 
last he beats off the foe, and rests secure in his own strength. 
He finds that to the man who has abolished Fear and who can 
smilingly face any situation, Fate is very respectful and obliging, 
although to the man who fears it is a tormentor. In proportion 
to a man's fear will be his troubles. When he reaches the posi- 
tion when he can laugh in the face of Fortune, he will find her 
ceasing her coquetries and falling desperately in love with him. 

And after the man has met the great difficulty — fought the 
mighty fight — he finds that he has ceased to fear the little trou- 
bles and trials of life — he feels his strength — he knows his source 
of power. He holds his head erect and breathes in the pure air 



The New Thought. 55 

of heaven, and feels the warm blood tingling through his veins. 
He has found himself. HE HAS MET BEAR. 



THE UNSEEN HAND. 

The consciousness of the hand — When it first was felt — Always there — 
Now as the hand of a father — Now as that of a mother — A lover — 
A brother — Always guiding — Always leading — A mystery — Some day 
we will know the owner of the hand. 

I have felt the Unseen Hand — have been guided by it — have 
felt the kind but steady urge in the direction which it knew to 
be best, though my Intellect failed to see the beauty of the 
road toward which the Hand was directing me. For a time 
I rebelled against the impertinent interference of that which 
seemed to be a thing apart from me — a meddler — an unasked for 
helper. I had emerged from the dependent state — the state 
in which I thought it necessary to lean upon others. I gloried 
in my independence — my freedom — my ability to stand alone. 
Finding that it was good to stand alone — reveling in the joy of 
my new found freedom — rejoicing in the fact that the I AM 
within me was a reality — feeling within me the ecstasy that comes 
from the recognition of the reality of Individuality — I resented 
any interference from outside. But the pressure of the hand 
was still here — it would take my unwilling fingers within its own 
and lead me on — and lead me on. 

Finding that I could not get rid of this unseen helper — realiz- 
ing that it was intent upon guiding me in spite of my repeated 
assertions that I was able to take care of myself — that I was 
big enough to walk alone — I began to study the Something that 
was so determined to take an active part in the affairs of my 
life — I started in to become acquainted with it. 

I found that it had always been with me more or less, but that 
I had not before recognized its presence. So long as I felt that I 
was not able to stand erect upon my feet — so long as I feared — 
so long as I failed to recognize the I AM — I was scarcely aware 
of this invisible helper. But when I began to realize what I 
was — what was my place in the Universal order of things — what 
were my possibilities — my future — the presence of this unseen 
hand began to be manifest. When I at length threw off the 
last fetter that had bound me — when I threw back my shoulders 
and drew my first free breath — when I shouted aloud with joy 
at my freedom and strength — when I realized the power that was 
within me and at my command — when I started out to accom- 
plish that which my awakened mind told me was possible of 



56 



Nuggets of 



attainment — when I started to do these things all by myself — 
then I felt for the first time the firm clasp of the unseen hand. 

Now gently guiding — now leading — now kindly restraining — 
now giving a gentle urge toward people, things and conditions 
— now drawing me back from the edge of a precipice — now direct- 
ing toward a better path — now giving me a gentle, firm pres- 
sure to reassure me of its presence when I doubted — now allow- 
ing me to rest my weight upon it when I felt tired — always there. 

At times this hand has placed before me conditions that 
seemed to me to be anything but good. At times it has brought 
me pain. But I have learned to trust it — have learned to trust 
it. The conditions that have seemed to me to be undesirable 
have brought me to desirable things. The pain that I 
have suffered has brought me pleasure. The experiences that 
have come to me I would not wish to part with — the more pain, 
the more experience ; the more experience, the more knowledge. 

I have learned to love this hand. And the owner of the hand 
seems to feel and return this love, and now and then, by a 
sympathetic little clasp, lets me know that I am understood. 
This hand sometimes seems to be that of a Father — strong and 
firm — leading on with a confident air. Again it seems to be that 
of a Mother — gentle and kind — leading me as does the mother 
lead her child. Again it seems as the hand of a woman who 
loves me — clinging and warm — neither leading nor being led — 
just moving on clasped in mine — no words — but with a perfect 
understanding. The owner of this hand seems to combine within 
itself the qualities of both sexes — seems to have within itself 
all the attributes of Father, Mother, Lover, Brother, Sister. It 
seems to respond to the human need, in every direction. It 
seems always the hand of Love — even while giving me pain. 

I have never seen the face of the owner of this hand. I have 
never looked into its eyes. I have never seen its form, if form 
it has. But I have been conscious, at times, of being lifted up 
in its arms and being pressed close to its breast. I have felt the 
impulse of the child, at such times, and have felt for the breast 
of the mother, and have been conscious of the answering mother 
pressure as I was drawn up close to the body of the owner of 
the hand. And, at times, have I felt rebellious at the confining 
clasp, and have struggled and have even beat against the breast 
with my puny fists as I insisted that I be released from the 
clasping arms. But, mother-like, the owner of the hand only 
drew me closer to the breast until I could feel the very heart- 
throbs within the mother-body — could feel the vibrations emanat- 
ing from its life — could feel the warm breath upon my cheek 
as the invisible face bent over me impelled by the mother love. 

Again, it takes on the father-form, and I place my little hand 
within it, and feeling like the boy whose father is taking him 
on a journey, I say "Lead Thou me on," and go cheerfully and 



The New Thought. 57 

with faith into new lands — new surroundings — new fields. Why 
should I fear, have I not hold of my father's hand? And the 
hand at such times rests upon my shoulder, every once in a while, 
and I realize that the father feels a pride in his son, and sees 
him growing in strength and knowing — that the father looks 
forward to a time when he will be able to talk with the boy 
who will then have grown in knowledge, and will be able to 
understand some of the secrets of Life that the father will then 
unfold to him. 

And, still again, the hand is that of the loving woman who is 
walking along the path of Life with the man she loves. It is a 
tender clasp — the fingers tingle with love — the arm presses close 
to mine. I hear no voice — no words are needed — soul talks 
to soul in the silence. We walk on and on and on. We under- 
stand. 

And, still again, the hand seems that of a brother — a twin 
brother. Neither the protection of the father — the loving tender- 
ness of the mother — the thrill of the lover's touch — is there. I 
feel not that the hand is that of a stronger being — I am conscious 
only of the brotherly clasp — the touch of comradeship — the pres- 
ence of an equal. I feel by my side a helper — someone who will 
back me up in time of need. And I stroll along by his side 
and laugh with joy. The joy of the boy is again 
mine. The joy of companionship is again mine. And, 
lo the hand of the brother seems to grow — he and I are again 
men. And something in his hand-clasp seems to say to me, 
''Come, brother, let us go forth into the unknown future. Let us 
have Faith. There are lands awaiting our coming. Let us 
enjoy them. Let us explore them. Let us be filled with the 
spirit of adventure, and go forth. Let us see — let us feel — let us 
know." And I return the clasp, and sav, "Aye, brother, let us 
go forth. Whither thou goest there will I go. Thy joys shall 
be my joy — thy pain my pain. Let us go forth — let us go forth 
to the Divine Adventure." 

And, so, manifesting the attributes of all human relations, in 
turn, and at the proper time, the owner of this unseen hand is 
near me. I feel his presence — I am aware of his nearness. At 
times faith grows faint, and I think it all a delusion — a phantasm 
— a dream. All seems lost, and I weep. But, lo ! in the midst of 
my despair, I feel the hand upon my head — I know that it is a 
reality and, through my tears, I smile. 

Shall I ever know the owner of this hand? Shall I ever see 
its face? Shall I ever understand the mystery of its existence? 
I know not. But faith whispers in my ear, "Wait ! All is well ! 
When the pupil is ready the Master appears. When your eyes 
have a clear vision and can bear the sight, then shall you see the 
Face of the owner of the hand. You have entered the Path and 
there is no turning back. Go on — go on in Faith, Courage and 



58 



Nuggets of 



Confidence. Why should you doubt — have you not felt the pres- 
sure of The Hand?" 

Aye, why should I doubt or question? Have I not felt the 
pressure of the Unseen Hand? Open your hands, friends, that 
the Hand may clasp yours as it has mine. While your hand is 
clenched in Anger and Hate — while it clutches tight the gold it 
has snatched from the hand of another — while the fingers are 
drawn together with Fear — it cannot receive the Unseen Hand. 
Open it wide — reach it out — offer it in friendly clasp — and you 
will feel within it the touch of that which you seek. 

The Unseen Hand is waiting to clasp yours. Give it welcome — 
give it welcome. 



HOW SUCCESS COMES. 

Seeking success through mental powers — Holding the thought alone not 
sufficient — Hlow to get the real benefit of thought-force — Fall in with 
the workings of the Law — Stand on your own feet — One step at a 
time— "I Do" as well as "I Am." 



Many of the men and women who have been seeking Pros- 
perity by means of the powers of the mind, have done so by 
"holding the thought," and then folding their hands and calmly 
waiting for some "lucky" event to happen, or in other words, 
for the long sought for prize to drop down into the laps, from 
out of the Nowhere. Now, I have heard of a number of cases 
in which things apparently came about in this way, although I 
have always felt that a little investigation would have shown some 
good and natural cause behind it all, but as a rule the law does 
not work in this way — it does not leave the old beaten road of 
cause and effect. It is no Aladdin's lamp which has merely to be 
rubbed in order that glittering gems, and showers of gold, be 
poured out into the lap of the owner, as he lies back on his cush- 
ions, lazily rubbing the lamp with the tip of his little finger. The 
law expects from the man who would invoke its mighty aid, a 
little honest work on his part. 

I think that the majority of those who have met with a greater 
share of Success by means of the wonderful power of Thought, 
have met with such Success not by having it fall from the skies, 
but by following out the ideas, impulses, yes, inspiration, if you 
will, that have come to them. The man who has turned his back 
upon the old negative Mental Attitude — who has turned his face 
toward the rising sun — who has allowed the voice of Faith again 
to be heard — who knows that the Law which rules the motions of 
the worlds and still takes note of the sparrow's fall, has his inter- 
est at heart and asks but for Faith — that man, I say, finds that 



The New Thought. 59 

from time to time ideas will come into his mind just when they 
are needed ; will find that the Law takes cognizance of all human 
needs and has prepared a way to satisfy them. He finds that new 
ways are pointed out to him — avenues of escape from unbearable 
conditions — signboards pointing out the right road, but he must 
have FAITH in these little hints from the Infinite, and must 
follow them. The Law will open the door to you, but will not 
push you in. And when it finds that you refuse to see the open 
door, "it softly closes it, and not until many weary years have 
passed do you recognize what you have missed. And the Law 
insists upon doing its work in its own good way — not in 
your way. You may know what you want, but you may not 
know just the right way to get it, although you think you do. 
The Law will give you many a hint, and many a gentle push in 
the proper direction, but it always leaves you the liberty of choice 
— the right to refuse. It does not insist upon your love, your 
Faith; that is, it does not make you love and have Faith, but 
until you do love and have Faith you are not conscious of the 
promptings of the Spirit, or, at most, dismiss them as beneath 
your notice. Oh, ye of little Faith, when will ye learn. 

The man who understands the workings of the Law, acts upon 
the tender impulses imparted to him, without resistance. He 
does not ask to see the end of the journey, but he sees the step 
just ahead of him very plainly, and he hesitates not about taking 
it. He does not expect the Law to bring RESULTS and place 
them in his hand. All he asks and desires is that the way be pointed 
out to him, and he is willing and ready to do the rest himself. 
The true man or woman does not wish to be fed with a spoon. 
All they ask is that they may have a fair chance to reach the 
source of supply, and they can manage to handle the spoon them- 
selves. If any man think that the Law is an incubator of para- 
sites — of leeches — of vampires — he is greatly mistaken. The 
lesson of the Law is to teach every man to stand upon his own 
feet — to lean not upon another — but at the same time to feel that 
he is guided by the great Law of which he himself is a part, which 
manifests within him as well as without him, and that, conse- 
quently, while placing his trust in the Law, he trusts in himself. 
Not paradoxical at all, when you have the key. 

Yes, yes, the Law expects every man to do well the work that 
lies to his hand — and to do it well, whether it is irksome or dis- 
tasteful or otherwise ; and as soon as he ceases to rebel and beat 
his wings against the bars of the cage, the way is opened for the 
next step; and if he does not take that step, he 
must work away until he learns to take it. And so 
on, and on, the lesson of each task to be learned before the next is 
presented. Work ? why certainly you must work. Everything in 
the Universe works unceasingly. When you learn to look upon 
work as a joy and not a curse, then you are beginning to see 



60 Nuggets of 

your way out of the grinding process. Then you are getting a 
glimpse of the Promised Land. Why bless your hearts, Work 
is the best friend you have, the only trouble is that you have 
treated it as an enemy and it has paid you back in your own 
coin. When you learn to treat it as a friend, it will be only too 
glad to make up, and you will get along like two old cronies. 

Now, you people who have been sitting with folded hands and 
"calmly waiting," and complaining that your own has not come 
to you, listen : You are mistaken. Your own has come to you 
— that's just the trouble. Your own is the thing you attract, and 
you have been attracting just what has come to you. Start in 
to-day, determined to fall in with the workings of the Law, and 
pay attention to the "I DO" side of things as well as the "I 
AM," and you will receive new light. Great things are just ahead 
of you, but you must reach out for them — they're not going to 
drop into folded hands. This is the Law. 



THE MAN WITH THE SOUTHERN EXPOSURE. 

Southern exposure as good a thing in a man as in a room — The man 
who faces the sun — Lives one day at a time and does the best he 
knows how, and is kind — Finds Joy and carries it to others — Simple, 
loving, kind — Open yourself to the sun. 

Did you ever go house hunting? Then you remember how the 
agent laid much stress on the fact that certain rooms had a 
"Southern Exposure." No matter how many other good quali- 
ties the house had, all was subordinated to the fact that the best 
rooms faced the South — had the longed for "Southern Expo- 
sure." The very words conveyed to your mind the sensation of 
balmy breezes — the freedom from the rude blasts of the North — 
the cheering rays of the Sun — plenty of light and healthful vibra- 
tions coming from old Sol. Ah, that "Southern Exposure" — 
how much the words convey. 

Now, if this "Southern Exposure" is such a good thing in a 
room, why isn't it a good thing in a man? Did you ever meet the 
man with the "Southern Exposure" — the man who faces the Sun ? 
Do you recall how he brought with him the inspiring Solar vibra- 
tions. Do you remember how the wrinkles and frowns disap- 
peared from the faces of those in his presence? Do you remem- 
ber how, long after he had departed, the memory of his presence 
cheered you — the thrill of his thought vibrations remained to 
stimulate? We all know this man with the "Southern Expo- 
sure," God bless him. . We couldn't get along without him. 
There are a number of him, and he is scattered all over the 
globe. We call him by different names, but he is always the 



The New Thought. 6i 

same man. After we have felt the cold Northern chill emanat- 
ing from some of the cold, despondent, negative people with 
whom we have come in contact, what a relief it is to meet some 
one who carries with him the mellowing sunny, vibrations of the 
South wind — the man with the "Southern Exposure." As the 
vibrations of the Sun bring life, energy, and strength to all 
things having life, so this sunny man brings positive, bright, 
cheerful and happy thoughts to us, and stimulates, encourages 
and strengthens us. He actually radiates sunshine and cheer in 
all directions, and thaws out the natures that have become well 
nigh frozen from contact with people of the other type. Oh, it's a 
great thing, this "Southern Exposure" in a man or woman. 

This man faces the Sun. He is an optimist. He looks on the 
bright side of things, and gets all there is in Life — he LIVES. 
He manages to extract "fun" out of the most unpromising con- 
ditions and things, and goes on his way with a smile, and a 
cheerful song, an abiding faith in the Absolute. He lives his 
life, one day at a time, loving all of God's creatures and letting 
the creatures know it — carrying a message of hope, and courage, 
and a helpful suggestion to all mankind. He is the salt of the 
earth, and Life would lose its flavor if he were taken from us. 
And how smooth the pathway of Life seems made for him. It 
matters not in what station he may be placed — what seemingly 
small degree of material prosperity may come to him — what 
may be his surroundings and environments — he makes the best 
of everything — he still catches the rays of the Sun, and rejoices — 
he has the "Southern Exposure." 

He is broad and tolerant — merciful and forgiving — devoid of 
Hate, Envy and Malice — free from Fear and Worry. He minds 
his own business, and grants you the same privilege. He is full 
of Love, and radiates it to all the world. He goes through Life in 
his own sunny way, meeting cheerfully the things that drive others 
to Despair and Misery — somehow things seem to be smoothed 
out for him, and he passes over the stony road, unharmed. His 
Peace comes from within — and all who meet him feel his pres- 
ence. He does not seek after friends or love — Friendship and 
Love come to him as a right— he attracts them. People are 
glad to see him come, and sorry to *see him go. Little children 
and animals are drawn to him, and know him as their friend and 
lover. He is as much at home in the tenement of the laborer as 
in the palace of the wealthy — both places seem home to him, and 
their occupants on a level. Brother to both Saint and Sinner is 
he, and he loves one as much as the other, for he somehow feels 
that each is doing his best. He looks for the good in the Sinner 
— not for the sin in the Saint — although he knows that both 
exist. He is not a Pharisee — he recognizes within himself all 
that is within both Saint and Sinner — he knows that he is not 
without sin, so he dares not cast the first stone. The outcast 



62 Nuggets of 

recognizes in him a brother — the woman who has passed through 
the fiery furnace trusts him and is not afraid, for she knows that 
he understands. He, being near the Sun, knows that it shines 
alike on Saint and Sinner — he feels that when God withholds his 
Sunbeams from his most disobedient child, then may he withhold 
his love from his most degraded brother or sister. Until that 
time comes he sees fit to love them. He does not Condemn — he 
lets God exercise that prerogative, if he sees fit — he does not feel 
fit to act as Judge. He believes that the Universe is conducted 
on sound business principles — that God knows just what he is 
about and does not require any gratuitous advice from Man. 

He works, and works well. He finds Joy in his work — pleas- 
ure in the humblest tasks. He likes to Create things — and he is 
proud of that desire, for he feels that it is an inheritance from his 
Father. He does not seem to hurry — nor is he rushed. He has 
plenty of time — Eternity lasts a long while, and he is in it NOW. 
He is not afraid of Death — or even Life — he knows them as one. 

He goes about his way — doing his best — and letting the other 
fellow alone. 

He has an abiding Faith in the Absolute — he believes in In- 
finite Justice and Ultimate Good. He does not fear his Father — 
he cannot find room for Fear where Love abides. He does not 
believe that there is a bottomless pit into which his loving Father 
intends to plunge him — he has too much confidence in his Father 
to think that. He believes that there is enough Hell on earth to 
burn away the mistakes and ignorance of Man. And he believes 
that all the burning ones will eventually emerge purged of their 
dross. He knows that his Father is near him, for he has felt the 
pressure of his hand. In the darkness of the night he has felt 
the Father's presence — by the glare of the lightning flash he has 
seen His form, for a moment, and that memory is burned into his 
brain. He faces the Sun — this man with the "Southern Expo- 
sure." 

He is Simple, Loving, Kind. He is of the Elect. He is a 
prophecy of the Future. And he is on the increase. On the Tree 
of Life are many promising buds, which the Sun of the Spirit is 
nursing into beautiful blossoms that will yet fill the world with the 
delicious fragrance of Love. 

There are certain people who have come into our midst silently 
and without announcement. They have found places waiting for 
them. They have come to prepare the way for their brothers 
and sisters who are in the womb of the future — they are work- 
ing quietly to prepare a home for their unborn brothers and sisters 
when they come. They are the forerunners of the Coming Race. 
Smiled at — sneered at — persecuted — reviled — pitied — it matters 
not. God has sent them — they have his message to deliver — 
that's why they are here. The world may raise its eyebrows — 
shrug its shoulders — tap its forehead significantly — but these new 



The New Thought. 63 

people smile, they know, they know. They see the misunder- 
standing multitude as mere babes in the Spiritual knowing — 
many of them babes unborn — and they heed them not. 

Take notice of these people — they are making their presence 
felt. They are wielding a silent powerful influence, and are 
molding public opinion far more than are the blatant reformers, 
the boastful leaders, the bespangled figures strutting at the front 
of the stage. The people who are thus being used — instruments 
in God's hands — are these quiet men and women who are facing 
the Sun — these people with the "Southern Exposure." 

If you feel the call to join the ranks of these people — do not 
resist, but answer cheerfully "I hear; I obey; I come." Allow 
the seed to grow into the plant, the plant to put forth leaves — 
bud and blossom. When you feel the impulse, do not resist — 
open yourself to the Sun — receive its vibrations — and all will 
be well. Be not afraid — have within you that Love which cast- 
eth out Fear — place your hand in that of the Absolute and say 
"Lead Thou me on." After long ages of wandering, you are 
coming Home, 



A FOREWORD.* 

An individualist — Wearing no ticket or label — No one has a corner on 
Truth — Enough to go around — The Infinite Power back of all things — 
The Real Self is Spirit — The Law of Attraction — Fearthought — The 
Brotherhood of Man. 

* * * * I generally call myself a Mental Scientist, and 
am so known to my friends, but I merely use the term because 
it is broad and comprehensive, not because I bear the ticket of 
any particular school of the New Thought — not because I wear 
the badge of any special leader. I am an Individualist. I believe 
in the right of every man to think his own thoughts — to find 
his way to the Truth by whatever road he may see fit, even if 
he prefers to cut across fields in getting there. I believe that 
whilst all men are brothers, and each a part of a mighty Whole, 
still each one must stand squarely upon his own feet — must 
w ork out his own salvation — must do his own thinking. I believe 
that Truth is everywhere — in everything, and that we may un- 
cover a bit of it wherever we may happen to dig. I do not 
believe that any person has a corner on the Truth — a monopoly 
of Knowing:. I do not believe in Popes, in or out of the New 
Thought. Each of us will uncover his own little bit of the 

♦An extract from the article of this name in which the author intro- 
duced himself to the readers of the magazine "New Thought," upon assum- 
ing the position of co-editor, in December, 1901. 



64 Nuggets of 

Truth, but we must not imagine that we have the Whole Thing. 
There's enough Truth to go around — and to spare. 

I believe that there is an Infinite Power in, and of, all things. 
I believe, that, although today we have but the faintest idea of 
that Power, still we will steadily grow to comprehend it more 
fully — will get in closer touch with it. Even now, we have 
momentary glimpses of its existence — a momentary conscious- 
ness of Oneness with the Absolute. I believe that the greatest 
happiness consists in maintaining toward the Absolute the atti- 
tude of the trusting child, who, feeling no doubt of the parent's 
love — no doubt of his wisdom — places his little hand in that of 
the parent, and says: "Lead Thou me on." I believe that he 
who feels towards the Absolute, the trustfulness of the babe which 
places its little tired head close to the breast of the mother, will 
also be conscious of the tender answering pressure, as the babe 
is drawn just a little closer to the mother heart. I believe these 
things — I have felt them. 

I believe that Man is immortal — that the Real Self is Spirit, 
which uses mind and body as its tools, and manifests itself ac- 
cording to the fitness of the tools. I believe that Man is rapidly 
growing into a new plane of consciousness, in which he will 
know himself as he is — will recognize the I AM — the Something 
Within. Many are having glimpses of the Truth every day — 
the first glimpses of the light of the great Dawn are even now 
being perceived by those who are awake and watching. 

I believe that the mind of Man contains the greatest of all 
forces — that Thought is one of the greatest manifestations of 
energy. I believe that the man who understands the use of 
Thought-force can make of himself practically what he will. I 
believe that not only is one's body subject to the control of the 
mind, but that, also, one may change environment, "luck," cir- 
cumstances, by positive thought taking the place of negative. 
I know that the "I Can and I Will" attitude will carry one for- 
ward to Success that will seem miraculous to the man on the 
"I Can't" plane. I believe that "thoughts are things," and that 
the Law of Attraction in the thought world will draw to one 
just what he desires or fears. 

I believe that Fearthought ^s the root of more misery, un- 
happiness, disease, crime, failure and other undesirable things than 
any one thing 1 in the world. I intend to attack this monster most 
vigorously, through these columns. I intend going for him with 
the grace of God in my heart, and a good hickory club in my 
hand. I will cause many of you to tear out Fear by the roots — 
you don't need it about you. I will preach the gospel of Fear- 
lessness. There is nothing in the world (or out of it) to fear 
except — Fear. 

I will also preach the gospel of Backbone to you — will insist 
upon your inserting a steel-rod vertebra in the place of that india- 



The New Thought. 65 

rubber affair that some of you are carrying around with you. 
You doubt this, do you? — well, just you wait and see. 

I believe in the Brotherhood of Man. I believe in being Kind. 
I believe in everyone minding his own business — and allowing 
everyone else the same privilege. I believe that we have no right 
to condemn — "let him who is without sin cast the first stone." I 
believe that he who Hates, is an assassin; that he who Covets, 
is a thief ; that he who Lusts, is an adulterer ; that the gist of a 
crime is in its desire. Seeing this — looking into our own hearts — 
how can we Condemn? I believe that Evil is but Ignorance. 
I believe that "to know all is to forgive all." I believe that there 
is good in every man ; let us help him to manifest it. I believe 
in the absolute equality of the Man and the Woman — sometimes 
I think that the odds are slightly in favor of the Woman. I 
believe in the Sacredness of Sex — but I also believe that Sex 
manifests on the Spiritual and Mental planes, as well as on the 
Physical. And I believe that to the pure all things are pure. 

I also believe in the gospel of work — in "hustling." I believe in 
the I DO. as well as the I AM. I know that the man who will 
take advantage of the Power of the Mind, and who will manifest 
that power in action, will go forward to Success as surely and 
as steadily as the arrow from the bow of the skilled archer. 



PARTNERSHIP. 

Next to marriage, partnership is the most important association — Mental 
partnerships — Be careful whom you choose as your mental partners — 
Get into partnership with the best thoughts — Dissolve partnership 
with the other kind— "I Can, I Will ; I Do, I Dare." 

Next to marriage, a partnership arrangement is the most im- 
portant association into which a man or woman may enter. Its 
consequences are far-reaching and difficult to escape, and to a 
very considerable extent one is bound by the acts of his partners. 
This being the case, it is of the utmost importance that one 
should exercise the greatest diligence and care in selecting part- 
ners. If any of my readers were to contemplate entering into 
a partnership agreement with others, he would be sure to select 
those who were possessed of the most desirable qualities, and 
those most conducive to success. He would carefully avoid those 
possessed of Lack of Confidence, Fear, Worry, Discouragement 
and others of the "I Can't" class. He would seek out the Cour- 
ageous, Confident, "I Can and I Will" men. He would keep 
away from those in whom Hate, Malice, Jealousy, Envy, Bigotry 
and other traits of Ignorance were strongly manifest. He would, 
in short, choose those who possessed to the greatest possible de- 
gree the qualities most conducive to Success and would as care- 



66 Nuggets of 

fully avoid those possessed of opposite qualities. There is no 
doubt of the truth of what I have just said — every one of you will 
admit it. 

Now, I do not purpose telling you about business partnerships 
of the ordinary kind — you know all about those — but I will call 
your attention to the fact that you are every day forming part- 
nerships of a most important character and far-reaching in their 
effects, but of which you probably have been unaware. When 
your attention is once called to the matter, many things will seem 
clear to you that have heretofore appeared quite dark, and you 
will be able to avoid mistakes, in the future, that have been quite 
common in the past. This is an important lesson, and I trust that 
you will give heed to what I say. 

I have stated, in previous articles, that your mind is a mighty 
magnet, attracting to itself the thoughts emanating from the 
minds of others. Like attracts like in the world of Thought, and 
the prevailing character of your thoughts will be manifested in 
the character of thought waves drawn to you from the great 
ocean of thought. Your thought mingles and coalesces with 
thoughts of a corresponding nature sent out from the minds of 
others, and both you and the other senders are strengthened in 
the mental attitude by reason of the joining of forces. You are 
entering into a mental partnership with those unknown thinkers, 
and attracting them to you, and you to them. Why do "birds 
of a feather flock together," in business and everyday life? Sim- 
ply because they are irresistibly drawn to each other by the Law 
of Mental Attraction. The people with whom you are brought 
in contact are those of the same mental key as yourself. You 
may not agree with this statement, but a close analysis will prove 
it. The pushing, "hustling/' wideawake man will attract to him- 
self thought-partners of the same stamp, while the man who is 
afraid is always sure to find himself surrounded by people having 
the same defects. And not only is this true in the sense that the 
Law brings you into actual contact with people of the same men- 
tal key, but you are connecting yourself with hundreds of others 
who are thinking along the same lines, although you may never 
actually come in physical contact with these people. You are 
going into partnership with them, and will share in the firm's 
profits and losses, just as you would in case of an ordinary busi- 
ness partnership. And it is easy to foretell upon just what side 
of the firm ledger the balance will appear. 

When you approach a man on business, with your mind laden 
with thoughts of Fear, Lack of Confidence, etc., you strike a 
similar keynote in that man, and he instinctively feels that he 
has no confidence in you or your business, and if he is a man 
whose predominant note is Courage, he will feel the inharmony 
and get rid of you as soon as he can. If, on the contrary, he is 
also a "I Can't" man he will feel a fellow feeling for you, but it 



The New Thought. 67 

will do you no good ; it will be a case of "misery loves company," 
and the first thing you know you will find yourself and that man 
in an earnest conversation about "dull times/' "poor crops," "the 
country is going to the dogs," "no chance for a man nowadays," 
"we're all going to the poorhouse," etc., etc. I've seen it happen 
many a time, haven't you ? 

But if you are an "I Can and I Will" man, and he is the same, 
see how different things are. He will warm up to you and will 
feel that he understands you, and sooner or later you and he will 
do business with each other, in fact, the arrangement is begun 
with your first meeting. If you can get yourself in something 
like the same mental attitude of a man with whom you wish to do 
business, you will get along with him, never fear. 

When you have something in mind upon which you are work- 
ing, and you are at the same time maintaining the proper mental 
attitude, you are placing yourself in psychic touch with every 
other man in the same line who is holding the same mental atti- 
tude. You draw inspiration from them, and both parties to the 
mental partnership share in the profits. Both will share, to a 
certain extent, in each other's progress and both will draw largely 
from the mental stock of those who are working along the same 
lines, but who are holding a negative mental attitude. In fact, 
the whole store of knowledge and progress along those lines will be 
tapped by these partners holding the positive mental attitude. New 
plans, ideas, combinations, schemes, devices will spring into being 
in their minds, and they will not only help each other, but will 
draw upon the less positive people. This seems a hard law, but 
it is like all of Nature's laws, so severe that we are forced sooner 
or later to learn the lesson. We learn by experience only. This 
operation of the Law of Mental Attraction is a good example of 
one of the meanings of that saying, so dark to many : "To him 
that hath shall be given; to him that hath not shall be taken 
away, even that which he hath." At any rate, that is the way the 
law works. 

And it is not only in the matter of Success that this mental part- 
nership works. Its operations are manifest everywhere. You 
will notice that the negative emotions draw to themselves people, 
thoughts and things upon which they can feed. Let a man or 
woman manifest Jealousy, and, lo! as if from the earth spring 
apparent causes for that jealous feeling. All sorts of things 
seem to conspire to feed "the green-eyed monster" into a state of 
fatness. And let a man or woman get a notion that people are 
trying to "slight" them, and let them continue to hold this thought, 
and it will soon seem to the poor victim of Fearthought as if 
everybody in the world was determined to snub, slight and tread 
upon him and hurt his feelings. If he persists in this attitude, 
life will become a burden too heavy to bear, and there will be no 
possible relief for him except a change of mental front. Let one 



68 Nuggets of 

imagine that everyone is trying- to cheat him, and he will be a 
lucky man if he does not find that the things he feared have come 
upon him. Let a man cherish thoughts of Hate and Malice, and 
sooner or later he will become involved in all sorts of hateful, 
malicious schemes and occurrences, with his partners whom he 
has drawn to him. "He who lives by the sword shall die by the 
sword," is proven every day. He who thinks every man is a 
rogue will see enough rogues to justify him in his belief, and will 
probably end up by having people think of him as a rogue — he 
will draw all sorts of roguish people, things and circumstances to 
him. 

Did you ever start in the morning feeling cross and crabbed? 
Well, if you did you probably found that after the inevitable 
domestic row over the buckwheat cakes and coffee — after you 
had left your wife with tears in her eyes, and the children in good 
shape to get into trouble in school — that everyone seemed to "have 
it in for you." Some fellow in the train seemed to deliberately 
tread on your pet corn, another jostled you, and so on. When 
you got down to business, everything went wrong, and unless 
you brought yourself up with a short turn you had a dreadful 
time of it all- day, and were glad when night came that you might 
sleep it off. You will always find that there are plenty of people 
waiting to go into mental partnership with you in such cases. If 
you are looking for fight, you will get it. 

I tell you, friends, that people are all more or less in psychic 
touch with each other, and the sooner we recognize this fact the 
better it will be for us. This Law of Mental Attraction works 
either good or bad for us, according to the uses we make of it. 
If we run contrary to the law we will be taught lesson after les- 
son, until we learn something. But if we fall in with the workings 
of the law we will reap the benefits that come to Man when he 
masters and controls any of Nature's great forces. 

Now, don't make partnerships of an undesirable kind. If you 
do you will have to bear the consequences. If you have already 
formed such a partnership, dissolve it at once and go into liquida- 
tion. After a while you will have cleared up the old debts and 
straightened matters out and will begin to do business on another 
basis. And I want to tell you right here that you can get into 
the best mental firms in the world if you only go about it right. 
They will not object to you if you are a fit member, and', in fact, 
they could not keep you out even if they wished. The doors will 
open at the magic touch of the spoken word backed up by the 
proper mental attitude. Cut loose from the old thought associa- 
tions and form new connections. Get in touch with the right 
kind of thought-waves, people and things. Cultivate the proper 
mental attitude and demand an entrance to the firm you wish. 
Good men are scarce in all branches of business, trades and pro- 
fessions. There's room for you — away up at the top, too. Get 



The New Thought. 69 

what belongs to you ; do not be cheated out of your heritage. 
Assert yourself. Join to-day that good, hustling firm, whose name 
on the signboard reads : "1 CAN, I WILL, I DO, I DARE." 



THE SEEKERS, 

The secret of life — The riddle of existence — Sought now as ever — The 
whyness of things — Attempts' to answer the riddle — The Seekers — 
Fantastic creeds and queer philosophies — Revamping old ideas — The 
story of the man and the stars — The answer to be found within the 
soul. 

"I laugh at the lore and the pride of man, 
At the sophist schools and the learned clan, 
For what are they all, in their high conceit, 
When man in the bush with God may meet?" 

— Emerson. 

Man is trying to reason out now as in the past, the secret of 
Life — the riddle of Existence. He seeks to know from whence 
he comes, whither he goes, and what is the object of his exist- 
ence. He wants to know the whyness of things — what it all 
means. He is like the squirrel in the cage, which exhausts itself 
in traveling the long road of the wheel, only to find itself at the 
end of its journey just where it started. Or worse still, like the 
newly-caged wild bird, he dashes against the bars of his prison, 
again and again, in his efforts to regain his freedom, until at last 
he lies weak and bleeding, a captive still. 

It has ever been so, from the childhood of the race until the 
present time. Sages, seers, prophets and philosophers have en- 
deavored to reason out the problem, but their labors have availed 
nothing, and the riddle remains unanswered. Man has traveled 
over and over the circular road of thought, only to discover 
that it has no beginning— no ending. He thinks that he has 
explained things, but he has merely given them names. All 
the scientific research, all the theological and metaphysical specu- 
lation, has failed even to explain the sprouting of the mustard 
seed. Life and Death is a mystery to the most brilliant man of 
this civilization, as it was to the ignorant creature of the stone 
age. Races, nations, civilizations rise and fall ; creeds are born, 
grow strong, weaken and die, but the secret remains a secret 
still. 

The present day seems to have reawakened the latent desire 
of man to see behind the veil. The pendulum which carried so 
many thinkers to the materialistic extreme is beginning to swing 
in the opposite direction, and is causing a strange and wonder- 
ful revival of ancient creeds and philosophies. Those who have 



70 Nuggets of 

long since turned their backs upon the accepted creeds now 
find themselves in the company of those who still claim allegiance 
to the church, but who feel themselves cramped by the creeds 
fashioned for them by their fathers. 

The leader of the New Thought, reaching the top of the 
mountain, often finds himself face-to-face with a scientific savant 
who has reached the same place by climbing up the other side of 
the hill. And the scientist and the New Thought man need not 
be surprised to find a leader of advanced religious thought claim- 
ing a foothold on the top of the same hill. But the trio, after 
they have congratulated themselves upon reaching the summit 
and ending their journey look around them, and lo ! their moun- 
tain is but a foothill, and far above them, towering higher and 
higher, rise range after range of the real mountains, the highest 
peaks being hidden among the clouds ! 

One has but to look around him to see how strenuous has 
grown the search for the answer to the riddle. New creeds, 
philosophies, cults and schools confront us at every turn. The 
past has been ransacked for its discarded philosophies, which 
have been renovated and trimmed anew for modern use. The 
dust has been brushed off many an old and almost forgotten 
creed, which is pushed to the front under a new name and 
with new trimmings. Plato is worked overtime to furnish the 
twentieth century creed promoters with material to be done over. 
The wildest dreams of the ancients are toned down a little, and 
boldly offered to the eager multitude as the long sought for 
solution of it all. Priests and teachers of all the religions of all 
lands are among us vying with the priests and priestesses of 
the new philosophies and creeds of our own land, and bidding for 
public favor. And these new home-made philosophies, how 
frightfully and wonderfully are they made! The old philoso- 
phies of Greece and Rome are skilfully dovetailed with the creeds 
of the Orient, and the result is a thing differing from anything 
ever seen before by gods or men. 

Brahmins, Buddhists, Confucians, Mahommedans and Sun Wor- 
shippers claim thousands of followers in our land, and Isis and 
Osiris will before long again be given a place and duly installed 
in the new Pantheon. Thor and Odin will doubtless be revamped, 
and the rites of the Druids revived. We are looking every day 
for the arrival on our shores of the advance agent of the Joss 
propaganda from the Celestial kingdom. 

And the home product is, if possible, more fantastic and bizarre 
than the imported article. The wildest claims and statements 
are made with an air of authority, and are accepted as "gospel" 
by the adherents of the several sects. One does not know 
whether to sigh or weep as he watches some of the modern 
prophets and prophetesses strutting their little stage and cutting 
fantastic capers before high heaven, thus adding to the gayety 



The New Thought. 71 

of the nations. The demand for these things has been created, 
and nothing seems too highly spiced for the devotees of the latter 
day creeds. 

And the followers of those strange prophets, what of them? 
Many of them are mere excitement hunters; others that class 
of people possessed of a consuming thirst for something new ; 
some are honest seekers for the Truth ; and others are those who 
have cut away from their old moorings and are drifting about, 
rudderless and without an anchor, at the mercy of any stray 
current which may sweep them along. There are thousands of 
people who never heard of the philosophies and creeds of the 
ancients, who are now dazzled by the revamped doctrines ex- 
pounded by the modern prophets, and who, being impressed with 
the strangeness and novelty of the (to them) new truths, accept 
them as inspired and emanating from the Absolute. New gods 
have arisen and also new devils. The "Malicious Mental Mag- 
netism" of the Christian Scientists is as much a devil to them as 
was the orthodox devil of one hundred years ago to our fore- 
fathers. 

The new cults usually begin by performing cures by means 
of the power of the mind and other natural laws, which they 
attribute to the principles and teachings of their particular sects. 
Many of them now, however, frankly admit that they are past 
the healing stage, and look down upon the mere healing of dis- 
ease as a thing too nearly allied to the detested "material" plane 
to be seriously considered. The time of the leaders is now prin- 
cipally occupied in announcing and elucidating wonderful, high, 
spiritual truths for the seekers, soaring away up in the clouds of 
transcendentalism, leaving their followers behind, gaping up- 
wards like a crowd at a country balloon ascension. 

Once upon a time there was a reformer who attended a public 
meeting, and took part in an exciting debate on an important 
question of the day. At last, heated, wearied and disgusted by 
the fruitless struggle, he left the hall and started for home. It 
was a beautiful, cold winter's night, and the heavens were studded 
with stars shining bright through the clear frosty atmosphere. 
Pausing for a moment in his rapid walk, he glanced upward. 
The stars were twinkling away merrily. They did not seem to 
be at all disturbed by what had been going on in the meeting. 
They appeared just the same as when, in years past, as a boy 
he had looked at them with wondering eyes. As he gazed, a 
peaceful calm came over him, and his worry, doubts and fears 
seemed very petty. At last one little star appeared to notice 
him, and he thought he could see it cast a good-natured glance 
downward, saying, in a cheerful voice, "Why so hot, little man ?" 

When we feel cast down with doubt, torn with anxiety, weak 
from loss of faith, faint with fear, let us look aloft at the stars. 
When we see those distant points of light, knowing them to be 



j 2 Nuggets of 

centers of solar systems, knowing that beyond, beyond and be- 
yond are countless other suns and world, let us pluck up a 
little courage and realize that we are a part of a mighty Law, a 
stupendous plan. Let us know that the Power which called these 
things into life, and which is able to manage them, and even 
greater things, has us in charge and will not allow us to be de- 
stroyed. Let us know that we are but in the kindergarten stage 
of existence and that we shall go on and on and on, from plane 
to plane, ever onward and upward in the scale, until at last 
we shall be able to spell out the lines of the primer of Life, 
and learn the multiplication table of the Universe. 

Let us in the meanwhile live on in trust and hope; one day 
at a time ; living our own lives ; doing our best work ; getting the 
joy which comes from the simple, human life; lending a helping 
hand. Let us abolish Fear and Hate, and replace them with 
Courage, Confidence and Love. Let us look for Good rather 
than Evil. Let us know failure as merely a lesson in Success. 
Let us look upon Death as Birth. Let us do the best we can 
with this world, knowing that the next world will find us 
prepared for its task. Let us know that we are in Eternity 
right NOW. Let us know that God is not so far away as we 
have been taught, for is it not true that in Him "we live and 
move and have our being !" 

Let us preserve our sense of humor — for it will guard us 
against many a fear, many a folly, many a delusion. 

And, finally, let us keep out of the throng which is rushing 
wildly hither and thither, after leaders, prophets, sages, seers. 
Let us look within ourselves and see the little flame which burns 
steadily there. Let us know that we have within us the Light 
of the Spirit which naught can extinguish. And let us say with 
good old Newman: 

"Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom 

Lead thou me on. 
The night is dark, and I am far from home ; 

Lead thou me on. 
Keep thou my feet ; I do not ask to see 
The distant scene; one step enough for me. 

Lead thou me on." 



The New Thought. 73 



MENTAL PICTURES. 

"I hang bright pictures in my mind" — Bright pictures encourage one; 
gloomy ones depress — Get rid of your old gloomy mental pictures — 
Make a bonfire of them — Get rid of the particularly miserable one, 
first of all — Then put bright ones in their places. 

"I now hang bright pictures in my mind," said a friend to me, 
recently. Her remark explained to me without the necessity of 
further words, the cause of her bright, cheerful and happy dispo- 
sition, so greatly in contrast with that of the despondent, fretful 
woman I had known a few months ago. The change seemed 
so remarkable that one would have almost expected her to have 
claimed some startling occurrence as the cause of the wondrous 
transformation, instead of giving so commonplace an explana- 
tion. 

But just think how much there is in this thought: "I hang 
bright pictures in my mind." Stop a moment, and let the thought 
sink deep into your inner consciousness. "Bright pictures in 
the mind," why not, indeed? If we wish to make a chamber, or 
office, bright and cheery, we see that nothing but pictures repre- 
senting bright, cheerful subjects are hung there. They may be 
the choicest engravings or paintings, or they may be some little 
inexpensive things, but just so they are bright and cheery the 
purpose is accomplished, and the room somehow seems a happier, 
more joyous place than before. 

If we were preparing a new room for tne occupancy of some 
dear one, would we place there any but the brightest picture? 
Would we hang there pictures of pain and misery, hate and 
murder, jealousy and revenge, sickness, suffering and death, fail- 
ure and discouragement? Would we do this thing I ask you? 
Would you do it? And if not, why not, pray? Simply because 
you instinctively feel that the gloomy, hateful subjects would 
react upon the loved one. And you know, is the same way that 
the bright, cheerful, inspiring subjects are likely to uplift, stim- 
ulate, encourage and make better the occupant of the chamber. 

Have you ever noticed that some rooms always seem to exert 
a beneficial effect upon you, while others seem, to depress you? » 
Certainly you have. Well, the next time you go into these rooms, 
look around a little and see if the explanation of your moods is 
not to be found in the character of the pictures on the walls. You 
may not have specially noticed them before, but your sub-con- 
scious mental faculties have taken up the impression, and the 
reflex action has affected you. Who can resist the "fetching" 
qualities of a bright, baby face, smiling from a little picture on 
the mantel, or on the wall? Not I, for one. And who can help 



74 Nuggets of 

feeling the sense of comradeship for the kindly St. Bernard whose 
great, affectionate eyes look down upon you from the engraving 
on the other side of the room. And on the other hand, who 
could — but, now I'm not going to describe the other kind of pic- 
tures in this article. 

But now to get back to the "pictures in the mind." If the 
gloomy pictures on the wall affect people, what do you suppose 
will be the effect of carrying around gloomy, fearful, hateful, 
jealous, envious, despondent mental pictures? Can any good 
come of lugging this trash around with you? Come, now, be 
honest. Why don't you bundle up these horrible chromos of the 
mind, and then make a bonfire of the lot. Now is the time for a 
mental house-cleaning — get to work and clean out these miserable 
daubs, and replace them with nice bright, cheerful, happy, sunny, 
mental works of art. Do it to-day. You can't afford to put it off 
until to-morrow — indeed you can't. 

Oh, yes, I know that you have grown attached to some of these 
old mental pictures — you've had 'em around so long that you hate 
to part with them. There's that particular miserable one at which 
you're so fond of looking — you know which one I mean. You 
see, I know all about it. You've been in the habit of standing be- 
fore it with folded hands, and gazing, and gazing, and gazing 
at it. And the more you gazed, the more miserable you grew, 
until at last you felt that you would like to lie down and die, only 
that there was some work to do around the house, and you 
couldn't spare the time. Yes, that's the picture I mean. Take it 
down and put it on top of the bonfire pile, and touch off the whole 
lot. Then go back into the house and hang up all the new ones 
to be found, and the brightest one of the lot must hang in the place 
of that dear old miserable one that you threw out last — that one 
which was so hard to part with (the meanest one in the lot, 
always). 

And after you have done these things, how good you will feel. 
See how bright and cheerful the sun is shining; how pure and 
fresh the air seems — take a good long draught of it; look out 
the window and see the fleecy white clouds floating across the 
sky; the sky itself — how blue it is; and just listen to the blue- 
birds down by the old gate — Spring must be coming. Ah, how 
good it is to be alive! 



The New Thought. 75 



DON'T RETAIL YOUR WOES. 

A miserable habit — It grows as it is fed — A nuisance to friends and neigh- 
bors — It brings to you more of the same kind — You will get what 
you look for — Looking for trouble brings it — Don't imagine that 
you are being "put upon" — Don't retail your woes. 

Don't retail your woes. Do you think that it does you any good 
to go around with a long face, telling your tale of woe to every- 
one whom you can induce to listen to you ? Do you think that it 
does you any good ? Do you think it helps you to overcome your 
troubles, or makes your burden any lighter ? No, I don't believe 
that you think any such things. All your experience teaches you 
that people do not like to listen to long-drawn-out tales of your 
troubles — they have enough of their own. Even those who are 
always ready to lend a helping hand and to give what aid they 
can to one who needs it resent being made targets for a con- 
tinuous fusilade of troubles, woes, griefs, etc. And you know very 
well that a constant repetition of your own woes will only make 
them seem greater and more real to you. And then the chronic 
retailer of woe grows to be like the journalist — develops a keen 
scent for matter to be dished out to others — she needs it in her 
business. When one gets into this habit of carrying about tales 
to her friends, she runs out of ready material, and eagerly looks 
around for more with which to supply the demand. She be- 
comes quite an adept at discovering insults, sneers, double-mean- 
ing remarks, etc., on the part of her friends and relatives, where 
nothing of the kind was intended, and she rolls these things over 
and over in her mind like sweet morsels before she serves them up 
with appropriate trimmings, to her listeners. 

You will notice that I say "her," in speaking of the victim of 
this demoralizing habit, and some of my readers of that sex will 
undoubtedly take me to, task for blaming it on the woman instead 
of the man. Well, you all know my ideas about the equality of 
the sexes — about their being different, but one being as good as 
the other, with the odds a little in favor of the woman. But I feel 
justified in saying that this habit is one that seems to have a spe- 
cial liking for women, and it generally picks out a woman for its 
victim in preference to a man. When a man acquires this habit, 
he becomes such a nuisance to his friends and associates that 
sooner or later he will notice that they avoid him, and the chances 
are that some blunt fellow will tell him that he has no time for 
listening to tales of this kind, and that if he, the complainer, would 
display the same energy in attending to his business that he does 
to peddling around tales about how badly he has been used, he 
would not need any sympathy. But woman, God bless her, does 



j6 Nuggets of 

not like to hurt the feelings of others in this way — she suffers 
the infliction in silence, and then tells her friends how she has 
been bored. She will listen to her woe-retailing friend, and seem 
to sympathize with her, and say, "Oh, isn't it dreadful ;" "how 
could she speak so harshly of you;" "you poor dear, how you 
must have suffered;" "how could he have treated you so un- 
justly," and other things of that kind. But when the visitor goes, 
she yawns and says, "Dear me, if Mrs. Groan would only try to 
say something more cheerful ; she gives me the horrors with her 
tales about her husband, her relatives, her friends, and everybody 
else." But Mrs. Groan never seems to see the point, and she adds 
to her list of people who have "put upon her," as she goes along, 
her tired-out friends being added to the number, as their patience 
wears out. 

And then the effect upon the woman herself. You know the 
effect of holding certain lines of thoughts ; of auto-suggestion ; of 
the attractive power of thought, and you can readily see how 
this woman makes things worse for herself all the time. She 
goes around with her mind fixed upon the idea that everybody's 
hand is against her, and she carries about with her an aura that 
attracts to her all the unpleasant things in the neighborhood. 
She goes around looking for trouble, and, of course, she gets it. 
Did you ever notice a man or a woman looking for trouble, and 
how soon they found it? The man looking for fight is generally 
accommodated. The woman looking for "slights" always gets 
them, whether the giver intends them or not. This sort of mental 
attitude fairly draws out the worst in those with whom we come 
in contact. And the predominant thought draws to itself all the 
corresponding thought within its radius. One who dwells upon 
the fancied fact that everybody is going around trying to injure 
him, treat him unkindly, sneer at him, "slight" him, and generally 
use him up, is pretty sure to find that he has attracted to him 
enough people who will humor his fancy, and give him what he 
expects. 

In "Thought Force" you will remember, I tell the story of the 
two dogs. The one dog, dignified and self-respecting, whom no 
boy ever thinks of bothering. The other dog, who expects to be 
kicked by every passing boy, and who draws himself up, and 
places his tail between his legs, and actually suggests the kick 
to the passing boy. Of course he gets kicked. It's wrong for the 
boy to do it, I know, but the dog's attitude is too much for the 
nature of the average boy. And "grown-ups" are built upon the 
same plan. These people- who are going around in the mental 
attitude which invites unkind treatment, generally manage to find 
someone who will have his natural meanness drawn out to such 
a convenient lightning rod. And, in fact, such people often gen- 
erate harsh feelings in persons who scarcely ever manifest them. 



The New Thought. JJ 

Like attracts like in the world of thought, and one draws upon 
him the things he fears, in many cases. 

But one of the most regretable things about this woe-retailing 
woman, is the effect the habit has upon her own mind and char- 
acter. When we understand how one is constantly building up 
character, adding a little every day, and that our thoughts of the 
day are the material which are going into our character-structure, 
it will be seen that it is a matter of the greatest importance what 
kind of thoughts we think. Thoughts are not wasted. They 
not only go out in all directions, influencing others — attracting 
persons and things to ourselves — but they have a creative effect 
upon our own mind and character. Thought along a certain 
line will develop certain brain-cells to a great extent, and the 
cells manifesting the contrary line of thought are allowed to 
dwindle away and shrivel up. Now, when we have our minds 
fixed upon the thought that we are long-suffering mortals, and 
that everyone else is trying to do mean things to us ; that we are 
not appreciated, and that those who should care most for us are 
only biding their time until they can hurt us ; we are building up 
our minds along that line, and we find ourselves in the habit of 
looking for the worst in everybody, and we often manage to bring 
it to the surface, even if we have to dig hard for it. 

Some of this class of people seem to take a particular delight 
in bringing upon their head the harsh words and "slights" of 
others. Now, I really mean this. I have seen people go around 
with that "I'm a worm of the dust, please tread on me" air, and 
the same expression as that in the eyes of the dog which expected 
to be kicked. And when somebody would be nagged into saying 
or doing something that they would not otherwise have thought 
of, the woe-seeker's eyes would assume an expression of "I told 
you so," and "It's only poor me," and "It's all I can expect, 
everybody wishes to crush me," and a few other assorted 
thoughts of that kind. And then she will go to her room and 
moan and weep, and dwell upon her miseries until they seem 
to be as large as a mountain. And then the first chance she gets 
she will run around the corner to a friend, and will retail all the 
new stock of woes which she has accumulated, with fancy trim- 
mings, you may feel sure, and the friend will try hard to avoid 
showing that she is bored at the tale she has so often heard, but 
will say nice little things, until the mourner is sure that the whole 
world sympathizes with her, and she feels a glow of righteous 
indignation, self-pity and martyrdom. Oh, the pity of it all! 
These people go through the world, making things harder for 
themselves, their friends, their relatives, and everyone else with 
whom they come in contact. They are constantly seeking to keep 
their stock fresh and attractive, and display more energy in their 
retailing than the average man or woman does in business. 

This thing of looking for trouble is a very unfortunate thing 



78 Nuggets of 

in families. As a rule, I think that woman gets the worst of it 
in family troubles. The economic position places her at a disad- 
vantage, and she often suffers all sorts of horrible things, rather 
than have her troubles made public. But I must say that some 
women bring upon themselves all that they get. I have known 
them to get in a frame of mind in which they could see nothing 
but unkindness, where the utmost kindness was meant. Man is 
not an angel — far from it — but the attitude of some women is 
enough to bring out all the qualities other than angelic. They 
assume that they are "put upon" and live up to that idea. Every 
word that the man says is twisted and distorted into something 
entirely different from what he intended. The mental attitude 
produces moral astigmatism, and things are seen at the wrong 
angle. All the little things that happen are promptly retailed to 
some mischief-making neighbor, who is in the game for the ex- 
citement it affords her, and who laughs at the wife behind her 
back, and talks about her in turn to some third person. And 
the wife fairly draws upon herself all sort of things that never 
would have happened otherwise. She knows that her neighbor 
is waiting for to-day's budget of news, and she, almost uncon- 
sciously, shapes things so that the facts justifying the news are 
forthcoming. Did you ever notice that woman who keeps her 
troubles to herself does not have nearly as much bickering and 
strife in her household as the one who has acquired the retailing 
habit? 

Don't retail your woes. Keep them to yourself, and they will 
die, but spread them, and they will grow like weeds. You are 
making things worse for yourself — are drawing things to you — 
and are spoiling your mind, disposition and character by this mis- 
erable business of retailing woes. 



The New Thought. 79 



LIFE. 

There is in each of us a potential Something for expression — The Some- 
thing Within — The plant of life — No use trying to repress it, for de- 
velop it must — Life has a meaning — Growth, development and unfold- 
ment — The lesson of life. 

There is in each of us a potential Something, pressing forth 
for expression and growth in the direction of ultimate Good — 
casting off sheath after sheath in its progressive development 
and unfoldment — impelled by the impulse imparted by the Primal 
Cause — attracted upward by the Absolute. 

Failing to understand this impulse of the growing Something 
— seeking relief from its steady pressure — we look upon it as an 
intruder, and instead of allowing it to develop and grow nat- 
urally, we endeavor to kill it, or to train its growth after our 
own petty notions. We fail to see that this Something is like 
unto the plant which grows on steadily and surely, from seed to 
blossom, until its potentialities are fully expressed. We do not 
realize that this Plant of Life should be allowed to grow as 
does the lily, freely and without restraint, unfolding leaf after 
leaf, until the plant stands in its complete beauty, crowned with 
its divine flower. 

We would train the plant into some fantastic shape — dwarf it 
as the Chinese do the oak, that it may become the pretty orna- 
ment of the parlor instead of the noble monarch of the forest. 
We would have it grow our way, not according to the law of its 
being. We fancy that we know what is best for it, losing sight 
of the fact that deep down in the subconscious depths of its 
being reposes that which directs its every effort toward the 
Good — forgetting that its attraction toward the Absolute is draw- 
ing it steadily and irresistibly in the right direction. We forget 
that the plant will fulfill these impulses so long as there remains 
in it one atom of life. The seed in the ground will express itself 
in its little shoot, often moving weights a thousand times heavier 
than itself in its efforts to reach the rays of the sun. The sap- 
ling may be bent and confined to the ground, but its branches, 
following the laws of its being will instinctively shoot upward. 
Restrict the growth of the plant, if you can, but, nevertheless, 
it will move along the lines of least resistance and (grow to- 
ward the sun, in spite of your efforts. 

And so it is with the Plant of Life — the Something within us. 
We are afraid to allow it to grow according to the laws of its 
being, but wish to model it and shape it in accordance with the 
theories of ourselves or others (more frequently the latter, for 
most of our ideas on the subject are borrowed). We seem to 



80 Nuggets of 

imagine that the Intelligence that thought the plant into exist- 
ence did not understand its business, and we are afraid that 
without the assistance of our mighty intellect the poor thing 
will grow into a misshapen and unsightly thing. We would alter 
the shape designed by its Maker, and would twist it into the form 
approved of by the passing fashion of the hour. We would sub- 
stitute for the beauty and symmetry of Nature, our own fan- 
tastic ideas of form. 

But, like the plant, this Something of ours will not submit 
to the confining bonds — will not conform to the false standards 
which we would set up for it. Submitting as long as it must, 
it stores up reserve strength day by day and keeps up a continu- 
ous steady pressure in the direction of its desire, and some day, 
by a supreme effort, it throws off the interfering obstacles, and, 
obeying the laws of its being, again grows toward the Sun. 

Life is growth. It moves along, pressing this way and that 
way, along the lines of least resistance, drawing to itself that 
which it needs for its complete expression and growth, using 
this thing and that thing today, and discarding them tomorrow, 
after they have served their purpose — after their helpful quali- 
ties have been extracted. It assumes many forms in its growth, 
discarding sheath after sheath as outgrown. Any attempt to com- 
pel it to retain a sheath, which has become outgrown, will cause 
its life nature to revolt, and, in the end, with a mighty effort, it 
will burst forth, tearing the confining sheath into fragments. 
This Something may be restrained temporarily, but its growth 
is as sure as the rising of tomorrow's sun, and its attempted 
restraint only results, in the end, in a violent assertion of its 
right to unfold and develop according to Law. 

When we finally come to realize that Life has a meaning — 
that we are here for a purpose — that the process of spiritual 
evolution is being expressed in us and through us — that our 
growth is in accordance with Law — that the Absolute under- 
stands its business — then will we cease to attempt to meddle with 
the Great Plan. We will then cease our futile efforts to mold to 
our absurd and arbitrary shapes that which is intended to 
grow in the beautiful form of Nature's designing. We will 
realize that the power which called into being this Life of ours, 
knew just what it was about — that this Power placed within that 
Life the energy which is expressing itself in changing form and 
color, but which has but one real object — growth toward the sun. 
and when we realize this truth we will begin to have Faith, and 
will trust the Law to do that which is best to be done — will 
realize the folly of imagining that the weight of the Universe 
rests upon our shoulders. Some of these days we will awaken 
to the fact that ours is the conceit of the fly resting upon the 
mighty revolving wheel, imagining that the fanning of his wings 
causes the wheel to revolve. Some of these times the fly, tired 



The New Thought. 8i 

with its exertions, will stop to rest for a few moments, when it 
will find that the wheel continues to revolve quite well, thank 
you, without its active assistance. We have been taking our 
little selves quite seriously, indeed. The Something within is 
moving steadily and surely toward its goal, and much of the 
pain of life comes to us by reason of our efforts to restrict it — 
our efforts to change its motion, direction, speed. It is a mighty 
aid to those who understand and move along with it — but woe 
unto those who get in its way and endeavor to obstruct its pro- 
gress. If unobstructed, there is no friction — if interfered with 
it manifests friction, which means pain. 

This pain is the notice given us by the Law to the effect that 
we are obstructing the growth of the Life Plant, and, if we are 
wise, we will heed the warning. By conforming to the growth 
we will find that there is little or no friction, and life begins 
to take on new pleasures. By co-operating with the Law, and 
moving along with it, we will find that things will "come our 
way" in a most unexpected manner. The Law is a good friend 
and helper, and is of the greatest assistance to us, if we but 
trust it to do its work well, in its own good way. We can use 
its growing force to aid us in our daily pursuits, if we will trust 
it and move along with it, but we must heed the first sign of fric- 
tion and understand that we are in some way interfering with its 
natural growth. By living in accordance with the Law, instead 
of attempting to oppose it, we will find that we are guided in 
the direction of places, people and occupations best suited to 
develop us and to impart to us the experience needed to round 
out our lives. A realization of this fact by those who have 
experienced it, has given rise to the saying "nothing ever hap- 
pens" We find the teachers and helpers that we require, and 
they find us. If we need certain information, we will find it in 
some person or book, and will thus be placed upon the track 
of that which we seek. 

The Law will sometimes accomplish its results in ways far dif- 
ferent from that which we would have supposed to be the best, 
but after time has passed we can look back and will see that 
the way by which the results were accomplished was the best 
possible under all the circumstances. We may meet with some 
bitter disappointments, losses, sorrows, but in the end these 
things will be seen as good — will be seen as having been neces- 
sary to give us the experience needed — to round out our char- 
acters — to enable us to understand. 

There are none who would be willing to part with the expe- 
rience gained from even the most painful events of their lives. 
After, say, ten years have elapsed no man would be willing to 
have the memory and recollection of his greatest pain eradicated ; 
if at the same time he would have to part with the experience 
and knowledge which have come to him by reason of that pain. 



82 Nuggets of 

The pain and its resulting experience have become a part of us, 
and we are not willing to be robbed of our own. 

And we will realize, in looking backward, that if we had been 
living in accordance with the Law in the past — if we had under-* 
stood its workings — these very sorrows, disappointments, losses, 
would have been considered only in view of their ultimate good, 
and the very sting of the pain would thus have been removed. 
When we learn to regard the pain of today as we now do the 
pain of ten years ago, we may .feel that we are beginning to 
understand something of the operation of the Law of Good. 
And when we reach this stage, we will find that the pain is no 
longer pain, but only a form of Good. When we cease to cause 
friction, friction no longer exists for us. 

The lessons of life must be learned, sooner or later. It de- 
pends upon us whether they shall be forced upon us, in spite 
of our resistance, with much pain, or accepted by us, under- 
standing^, with knowledge. In one case we will have the pain 
which comes from opposing the Law ; in the other, we will learn 
the lesson equally well, without the pain of the birching. The 
lesson must be well learned in either case. Choose your method. 

Now, I do not wish to be understood as meaning that we 
should simply fold our hands and wait for the Law to bring all 
things to us without any labor on our part. Try this way, though, 
if you like, and see how quickly the Law will rap you over the 
knuckles to remind you that a task is set before you. The 
proper way is to take up the task that lies nearest your hand 
(and some task is always there) and do it well, with the knowl- 
edge that the task has been placed there in accordance with the 
Law. If the task is not to your liking, you will know that that 
is the very reason that it has been placed before you — you have 
a lesson to learn from it. When the time comes for a change 
you will find a strong desire for a something else full-grown 
within you. Now is your chance. Trust to the Law to aid you 
in working out your desire. The desire is there in accordance 
with the Law — its very existence is a promise of its fulfillment. 
With the aid of the Law you will work out your desire. It is 
true that when you attain the object of your desire, it may not 
be just what you had thought it — may not be at all what you 
want. Well, what of that? You have learned the necessary 
lesson — have lived out the desire and will now outlive it. Some- 
thing else will take its place. And you will be surprised at 
the way that Law has brought about the accomplishment of 
your desire. You will learn another lesson in this. 

When you have learned to work on, merrily — doing your best 
— living out each day's fife — with Faith and Trust, Confidence 
and Fearlessness — accepting the development of each day as 
meaning ultimate Good — seeing and feeling that the Law of 
Good is in full operation — being willing to accept whatever it 



The New Thought. 83 

may bring you — then, and not until then, good friend, will you 
begin to know what is LIFE. 



LET US HAVE FAITH. 

Faith necessary in every human undertaking — You have faith in man, 
but are afraid to trust GOD — The Universe if governed by Law — The 
Law is in operation everywhere — Don't be afraid — You are a part of 
the plan — Fall in with the Law — Have faith, have faith. 

When you take a journey by rail, you step into the car, settle 
yourself, take out a book and read, and give little or no thought 
to the engine or engineer in charge of the train. You go rushing 
across the country at the rate of fifty miles an hour, with 
no thought of possible disaster or accident, and for the time 
forgetting that there is such a person in existence as the engineer. 
You have absolute faith in the careful management of the road, 
and in the intelligence of the man who has been placed in the 
engine. The lives of yourself and hundreds of fellow passengers 
are practically in the hands of one man, and that man is a 
stranger to you — you have never seen him — you know nothing 
of his qualifications — you only know that the management has 
picked him out to safely conduct you across the country. 

You take a steamship to Europe and place yourselves in the 
hands of a few men who are total strangers to you. You 
stake your life on their skill, judgment and intelligence. You feel 
that they would not be where they are unless the management 
of the line considered them competent. It is all a matter of 
trust — of confidence. The same thing is true when you take 
your seat on a trolley car or on the elevated railroad, or even 
in a stage coach or a private carriage. In each case you place 
yourself in the charge of another person in whom you have a 
certain amount of confidence, although he may be comparatively, 
or wholly, unknown to you. 

You place your wealth in a bank, having confidence in its 
management. You have business dealings with men whom you 
scarcely know, trusting to their honesty of purpose. In every 
transaction in life you are compelled to have confidence in peo- 
ple. Your lawyer, your physician, your grocer, your clerks are 
all taken on faith. One cannot get away from it. If confidence 
were destroyed the wheels of modern life would stop in a 
minute. The so-called hard-headed practical man may sneer 
at Faith, but it underlies every manifestation of the life of this 
civilization. 

Man has faith and confidence in Man, but is afraid to trust 
GOD. He looks about him and sees millions of worlds, each in 



8 4 



Nuggets of 



its appointed place, each revolving in its own orbit. He has 
faith that at a certain time each world will be in a certain 
position, which position may be calculated centuries in advance 
— but he lacks faith in the Power that created these worlds and 
keeps them in their places. He has faith in certain Laws — but he 
doubts the existence of the Law-maker. He sees the wondrous 
manifestation of Life in great and small. He takes advantage of 
the telescope and the microscope and explores new regions, and 
finds the Law in operation everywhere — but he doubts the ex- 
istence of a great Law which governs his life — his incomings and 
his outgoings — his great deeds and his petty acts — he fails to 
realize the truth of the saying that the hairs on his head are 
numbered, and that not a sparrow may fall unnoticed. 

He seems to think that if there is a GOD, he must have made 
the world and then ran away and left it to take care of itself. 
He fails to see that Law must govern Man's life as it governs the 
unfolding of the leaf, the development of the lily. He fails to 
see that law is in full operation within him as well as without him. 
He fails to see that as he opposes the operation of Law, pain 
comes by reason of the friction. He fails to see that the only true 
philosophy is that which teaches one to fall in with the operations 
of Law, and to let it work in him and through him. 

Do you think for a moment that GOD does not know what 
he is about? Do you doubt the Supreme Intelligence which 
knows all things and is conscious of all things? Do you doubt 
the Supreme Power which manifests itself in all forms of power? 
Do you doubt the Universal Presence which is in all places at all 
times ? Do you suppose that the manifestation is everything, and 
the manifestor nothing? Poor man! 

Either the Universe is without Law — without meaning — with- 
out reason, or it is the manifestation of Supreme and Infinite 
Reason. Either it is the work of a Demon who sits somewhere 
and grins and gloats over our misfortunes — our trials — our trou- 
bles — our pain — our follies, or it is the work of an All-knowing — 
All-powerful — All-present Intelligence-Power-Presence which 
has taken into consideration everything within the Universe, 
down to the tiniest thing — down to the merest detail. And if 
this last be true, then everything that happens must be in ac- 
cordance with Law — everything that happens to us must be the 
very best thing that could happen to us at that particular time 
and that particular place. 

Things are not run by blind chance — there is Law under every- 
thing. Everything has some connection with every other thing — 
every person has a relationship with every other person. All is 
One — the manifestations are varied, but there is but One reality. 
There is a great plan underlying all Life, and Life itself is in 
accordance with that plan. Nothing ever happens. Every oc- 
currence has a bearing on every other occurrence. Chance has 



The New Thought. 85 

no part in the plan — everything is in accord with well ordered 
laws. There is always an end in view in every thought, word 
or act. We are constantly being used for the benefit of the 
whole. There is no escape — and when we get to know we cease 
to wish to escape. He who understands not Law is constantly 
struggling, striving, fighting and contending against it, and, 
producing friction, he feels pain. He who understands some- 
thing of Law ceases to contend against it — he lets it work through 
him, and is carried along with a mighty force, doing each day 
the best he knows how, expressing himself in the best possible 
manner, sailing to the right and to the left, with the wind and 
against the wind, but still being borne on by the mighty current 
and resisting it not. He enjoys every mile of the journey, seeing 
new sights and hearing new sounds — moving on ever. He who 
understands not, rebels at being swept along — he wishes to stay 
where he is, but there is no such thing as staying — life is mo- 
tion — life is growth. If you prefer to pull against the tide — 
to row up stream — by all means do so. After a while you will 
grow tired and weary, and will rest on your oars. Then you will 
find that you are moving on just the same toward the unknown 
seas, and you will find that it is much easier work rowing or 
sailing with the current, or from one side of the river to another, 
than to attempt to stay in the same place or to pull up the 
stream. 

All this fretting — all this worrying — all this contention and 
strife, comes from a lack of Faith. We may assert fervently that 
we know that All is Good, and that all is best for us, etc., etc., 
but have we enough faith to manifest it in our lives? See how 
we endeavor to tie on to things, people, and environments. How 
we resist the steady pressure that is tearing us loose, often with 
pain, from the places to which we have wished to stay fastened 
like a barnacle. The Life force is back of us, urging us along 
— pushing us along — and move we must. The process of growth, 
development and unfoldment is going on steadily. What's the 
use of attempting to resist it? You are no more than a water- 
bug on the surface of the river. You may dart here and there, 
and apparently are running things to suit yourself without refer- 
ence to the current, but all the time you are moving along with 
k. The water-bug plan is all right, just so long as we do not 
attempt to stop the current or to swim right against it — when we 
try this we find out very quickly that the current has something 
to say about it, and before long we get so tired that we are will- 
ing to fall in with the law behind the current. And yet even the 
opposition is good, for it teaches us that the current is there — 
we gain by experience. The New Thought does not teach people 
to stem the current or to swim up stream, although some teach- 
ers and some students seem to be of that opinion. On the con- 
trary, the real New Thought teaches us of the existence of the 



86 Nuggets of 

stream, and that it is moving steadily toward the Sea of Good. 
It teaches us how to fall in with it, and be borne further along, 
instead of attempting to hold back and become barnacles, or to 
try to push back up the stream. It also teaches us to live in the 
Now — to enjoy the darting backward and forward over the 
face of the waters. It also tells us of the direction in which 
the current is moving, that we may move along that way, without 
wasting our energies in trying to go the other. It teaches us 
co-operation with Law, instead of opposition to it. 

Why do we not have Faith? Why do we not see the great 
Plan behind it all? Why do we not recognize Law? As we 
have seen, we place our confidence in the engineer of the train — 
the pilot— the captain — the coach-driver, and the other guiding 
hands and yet we hesitate to trust ourselves in the hands of the 
Infinite. Of course, it makes no difference to the Infinite whether 
or not we repose trust in it. It moves along just the same, guiding 
and directing — steering and regulating speed — it minds not our 
doubts and obstructions any more than does the great driving- 
wheel mind the fly who is perched upon it and who does not like 
the movement and attempts to stop it by spreading out its wings 
and buzzing. The great wheel of the Universe is moving around, 
steadily and mightily. Let us go with it. And while we are 
going let us spare ourselves the trouble and folly of the buzzing, 
wing-spreading business. 

Let us part with Fear and Worry. Let us cease our imagin- 
ing that we can run the Universe better than the engineer who 
has his hand on the throttle. Let us cease imagining that GOD 
needs advice on the subject. Let us stop this folly of saying 
"Poor God, with no one to help him run things." Let us trust 
the engineer. Let us have faith — let us have faith. 



The New Thought. 87 



DO IT NOW- 

Do to-day's tasks now — Don't try to do to-morrow's work to-day, but be 
sure and do the day's work Now — The baneful effects of procrastina- 
tion — Not fair to yourself — Demoralization attendant upon putting 
off things — The world looking for people who can do things Now. 

If you have anything to do — do it. If you have any task to 
perform to-day — do it Now. If the matter cannot possibly be 
performed to-day, stop bothering about it, and get to work doing 
the things of to-day. But don't get into that miserable habit of 
putting off things until later in the day, or later in the week — 
do them now. The old proverb: "Procrastination is the thief 
of time," is true, but it does not go far enough. Procrastination 
is not only the thief of time, but the thief of energy — the thief of 
efficiency — the thief of success. 

We have had much to say about living in the Now — about not 
dwelling in the past or fretting about the future. And all this is 
true, and I will probably say it over and over again during the 
year, because I believe in it, and wish you to get acquainted with 
the idea. But living in the Now does not merely mean the 
thinking of the thoughts of to-day — the carrying of the burdens 
of to-day — the meeting of the problems of to-day. It also means 
the doing of the WORK of to-day. 

To attempt to carry last year's burdens — or next week's bur- 
dens — to-day, is folly of the worst kind, as you well know. But 
it is equally foolish to put off to-day's work until to-morrow. It's 
not treating to-morrow right — not giving it a chance. The Self 
of to-morrow is not exactly the Self of to-day. That is, it has 
grown a little and is the Self of to-day plus the added experience 
of the day. And it is just as selfish for the Self of to-day to at- 
tempt to throw his burdens upon the Self of to-morrow as it 
would be for you to attempt to throw your burdens upon your 
brother or sister. It is not only selfish, but it is hurtful to you — 
it impedes your growth. To-day's work is set before you because 
of the lesson it contains, and if you refuse to accept your lesson, 
you are the loser. You cannot get away from the task. It will be 
placed before you again and again until it is performed, and you 
might as well do it at once, and get your lesson at the proper 
time, and not be compelled like the schoolboy to "catch-up" in 
his work. By putting off things until to-morrow, you are simply 
heaping up troubles for yourself to-morrow, as to-morrow's own 
work will have to be done as well as your leftover tasks, and 
the chances are that neither of them will be done properly. There's 
no sense whatever in this habit of procrastinating. It is folly of 
the worst kind. 



88 Nuggets of 

And not only in the immediate effects is procrastination hurt- 
ful to one. One of the worst features of the case is the demoral- 
izing effect it has upon the whole mental attitude of the man. It 
cultivates laziness, indecision, shiftlessness, slackness and many 
other undesirable habits of thought and action. It manifests 
itself in numberless ways in the character of the man who has 
allowed himself to be tangled in it. It impairs his efficiency — 
affects his value. 

Then again, you are really unfair to yourself if you get in the 
way of putting off things. You never have any time to yourself if 
you have a number of old matters demanding your attention. 
The man who procrastinates is never able to spare time for men- 
tal improvement, because he always has some old loose ends to 
wind up — some old tangle to straighten out. And he loses all 
idea of the value of time — of getting the most out of every hour, 
every minute. The procrastinator is the veriest drudge — he has 
his nose to the grindstone all the time. He never has any time 
he can call his own. He is a slave to his own habit of "laying 
things aside." Poor man. 

I am satisfied that half the failures of life — yes, three-quarters 
of them — are due to the failure of persons to do the thing Now. 
Not only because of what they lose directly by this habit, but 
because of the effect it produces upon their character. The 
shiftless habit of thought manifests itself in action. The thought 
and action, long persisted in, will lead to a demoralization of 
the entire character of the individual. He soon forgets how to do 
things right. And that is where so many people fail. The world 
is looking for people who can DO things — and who can Do Them 
Now. 

If you are one of the procrastinating kind, start in at once and 
get over it. Put up a sign before your desk, your sewing ma- 
chine, your work-bench, or wherever you spend most of your 
time, and have these words in big black letters on the sign: — 
"DO IT NOW!" By carrying the thought of this NOW way 
of doing things, and letting it manifest itself in action as fre- 
quently as possible, you will find that before long your entire 
mental attitude regarding work has changed, and you will find 
yourself doing things when they should be done, without any 
particular effort on your part. The mind can be trained and 
taught to do things right. It needs a little courage, a little per- 
severance, a little will-power, but the result will pay you for your 
tiouble. Start in to cure yourself of this bad habit. Start in at 
once. Do it NOW. 

L.cfC. 



The New Thought. 89 



GET IN TUNE. 

Marconi's wireless messages — Vibrations reach only the instruments at- 
tuned to the sender — The same law in operation on the mental plane — 
The correct pitch is the thing — Get in tune with the proper vibrations — 
Get the messages from the best senders. 

I have just finished reading an account of Marconi's wireless 
telegraphy. It seems that when a message is sent from the Mar- 
coni transmitter, the vibrations travel in all directions, and not 
alone in the direction of the person to whom the message is sent. 
It would seem to the reader, at first, that any instrument, in any 
direction from the sender, could and would be affected by the 
vibrations and would take up and record them. But such is not 
the case, for Marconi finds that he can attune his receiving in- 
strument to a certain pitch, and that the instrument will receive 
and record only vibrations emanating from a sending instrument 
attuned to the same pitch. This is true no matter how near the 
instruments may be to each other, or in what direction they may 
be from each other. And all instruments, irrespective of number, 
that may be within sending distance, will receive the message 
providing they are attuned to the same pitch. 

Now just notice how much this corresponds to what we know 
of the working of Thought-force. People whose minds are at- 
tuned to a certain pitch will receive the vibrations from the minds 
of others whose mental keynote is the same. And if one main- 
tains a high positive keynote, he will not be affected by the vibra- 
tions emanating from the mind of another who may have a low 
negative pitch. The nearer to our pitch the mind of another may 
be, the more we feel the sympathetic vibrations in our own mind ; 
the greater the difference in the pitch, the less we will feel in sym- 
pathy with him. This will account for the instinctive likes or 
dislikes that many of us experience when coming into the pres- 
ence of other people. And how soon do people of kindred vibra- 
tions seek out and find each other in a mixed assembly. Many 
likes, unexplainable by any theory of personal appearance, etc, 
arise from this cause. 

And as the Marconi instruments may have their pitch changed, 
so are our mental keynotes changed from time to time as we 
adjust ourselves to new conditions — as we grow. This will ex- 
plain why two people, who at one time seemed to be in perfect 
attunement with each other, will drift apart until at last they seem 
to have scarcely a thought or feeling in common, and yet both, of 
them may be good people, really anxious to be helpful to the 
other. 

But this is not the only way in which the working of the Mar- 



90 Nuggets of 

coni system resembles the workings of the mind. I have often 
called your attention to the fact that the holding of certain men- 
tal attitudes resulted in the attraction to oneself of thought vibra- 
tions corresponding to the general character or the thought he»d 
in the mind of the person. Let a man be filled with the spirit of 
Jealousy, and everything seems to feed that feeling. He hears of 
cases of faithlessness on the part of other persons ; every circum- 
stance seems to confirm him in his belief. The actions of the 
loved one seem doubly suspicious — signs of guilt are seen in 
every expression, every move. He draws to himself the thought- 
waves of other minds vibrating on the same pitch — like attracts 
like. Let a man drop into the Fearthought condition, and imme- 
diately he feels the rush of Fear to his mind. Let him cast aside 
Fear, and attune himself to the Fearless pitch, and he feels an 
influx of Courage, Fearlessness, Confidence, Energy and other 
positive thoughts. 

And according to the character of your thoughts, will you draw 
to yourself people calculated to co-operate with you and be of 
assistance to you. Even things seem to shape themselves to fit 
in with the keynote you have sounded. 

Not only do you attract to yourself people and things cor- 
responding with your mental pitch, but you send out thought- 
waves affecting others creating impressions upon them. Go 
into the presence of an "I Can and I Will" man, and, if you are 
of the same kind, he will instantly perceive it and will be glad to 
talk to you. On the other hand, approach a man of this kind, 
with your mind full of "I Can't," and he will be conscious of 
inharmony and will want to be rid of your presence at once. 
Be a man with the southern exposure, such as I described to you 
in another article, and you will find that you will extract and draw to 
yourself all the sunniness in the nature of people with whom you 
come in contact. Be a human wet blanket, such as I have de- 
scribed in another article, and you will find that you will get the 
meanest qualities inherent in the nature of people with whom you 
come in contact — in fact you will be able to attract only that kind 
of people who are as musty and unwholesome as yourself. 

Get rid of the old negative notes. Start in and cultivate the 
positive, joyous, active vibrations, until you reach the steady 
mental pitch of the "New.Thought" man. Then will all the neg- 
ative vibrations pass you by, finding no encouragement to enter 
your mentality — then will you receive the bright, cheerful, happy, 
fearless vibrations coming from others who have reached the 
same plane of thought. 

Get in tune — get in tune. 



The New Thought. 91 



MENTAL TOXIN AND ANTI-TOXIN. 

A new toxin — The microbes in the thoughts we think — The new anti- 
toxin — Thoughts may poison — Fear causes paralysis — Hate causes in- 
sanity — Fear and Hate have killed their thousands — Gates' experi- 
ments — How to overcome the poison of bad-thinking. 

In these days of toxin and anti-toxin — of poison in sausages, 
oysters, canned beef, ice cream — of anti-toxin serums (that often 
are more deadly than the original toxin) for the prevention and 
cure of tuberculosis, leprosy, pneumonia, typhoid fever, tetanus, 
bubonic plague, diphtheria, and the rest of the list, it requires cour- 
age to call the attention of the public to a new "toxin," even if at 
the same time we furnish an anti-toxin that ''anti-toxicates." 

We shudder at the thought of microbes and bacilli — and there- 
by attract them to us ; we filter our drinking water, after boiling 
all the life out of it; we develop into microbe hunters, and see 
poison in everything we wear, eat, drink or breathe. But we over- 
look the microbes in the thoughts we think. We encourage the 
enterprising doctor in his giddy chase after the nimble dollar, as 
he produces anti-toxin serums to order. The poor, broken-down 
cart horse is worked overtime in producing filthy pus and serum 
for the serum-maniac to inject into our circulation. But we over- 
look the pure, harmless, powerful anti-toxin obtained fresh from 
the cells of the brain — Right Thinking. 

That Thoughts may poison, is a well-proven fact. Depressing 
thoughts interfere with the cerebral circulation, impairing the 
nutrition of the cells and nerve centers. The result is that the 
organs and tissues manifest lost or impaired function — loss of 
general nutrition follows — and a break-down is inevitable. Fear, 
worry, anger, envy, jealousy, and other negative thoughts, reflect 
themselves most disastrously in the human system. Fear has par- 
alyzed nerve centers, and turned the hair white over night. A 
mother's milk has been poisoned by a fit of anger. Fear and 
Hate — father and son — have produced insanity, idiocy, paralysis, 
cholerina, jaundice, sudden decay of teeth, fatal anaemia, skin dis- 
eases, erysipelas, and eczema. Epidemics owe their rapid spread 
and heavy death rate to Fear and Ignorance. Epidemics may 
kill their dozens — Fear kills its thousands. All the brood of nega- 
tive, fearful, selfish, hateful thoughts manifest themselves in phy- 
sical conditions. Stigmata or marks upon the body, caused by 
fear or desire, are quite common in the annals of medical science 
and psychology. 

Professor Gates, of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, 
D. G, in his investigation of the effect of mental states upon the 
body, found that irascible, malevolent and depressing emotions 



9 2 



Nuggets of 



generated in the system injurious compounds, some of which were 
extremely poisonous; he also found that agreeable, happy emo- 
tions, generated chemical compounds of nutritious value, which 
stimulated the cells to manufacture energy. He says: "Bad and 
unpleasant feelings create harmful chemical products in the body 
which are physically injurious. Good, pleasant, benevolent feel- 
ings create beneficial chemical products wmich are physically 
healthful. These products may be detected by chemical analysis 
in the perspiration and secretions of the individual. More than 
forty of the good, and as many of the bad, have been detected. 
Suppose half a dozen men in a room. One feels depressed, another 
remorseful, another ill-tempered, another jealous, another cheer- 
full, another benevolent. Samples of their perspiration are placed 
in the hands of the psycho-physicist. Under his examination they 
reveal all these emotional conditions distinctly and unmistakably." 
Remember, this is not "the airy fancy of some enthusiastic Mental 
Scientist," but is the testimony of a leading scientific investigator 
in the laboratories of the Smithsonian Institution, one of the best 
known scientific institutions of the world. "Chemical analysis," 
mind you — not "transcendental imaginings." 

Now I have said enough about the toxin and some little about 
the anti-toxin of the Mind. I might go on for hours, stating ex- 
ample after example; illustration after illustration, but the tale 
would be just the same. Now what are you going to do about it? 
Are you going to keep on poisoning yourself and those around you 
with vile, malignant thoughts reeking with the miasmatic effluvia 
of Hate — emitting the noxious exhalation of Fear and Worry? 
Or will you cease being a psychic pest-house, and begin to fumi- 
gate and disinfect your Mind? And after getting rid of all the 
microbes of Fear and Worry and the bacilli of Hate, Jealousy and 
Envy, open wide the windows of the Mind and admit the bright 
Sunshine of Love, and the bracing air of Confidence and Fearless- 
ness. 

Come, friends, let us get out of this habit of poisoning the air 
with Fear, Worry and Hate Thought. Let us join the ranks of the 
Don't Worry company — the Fearless brigade — the invincible, 
conquering army of Love. Let us be bright, cheerful and happy 
— the other things are not worth while. Let us be Confident, 
Expectant, Hopeful and Fearless — these things are winners. Let 
us be filled with Love for all men — and we will find that Life is 
one sweet song. Love, Faith and Fearlessness, are the ingre- 
dients of Life's great Anti-Toxin. Try it and be blessed. 



Ella Wheeler Wilcox 

Undertakes New Work 



FAVORITE AUTHOR BECOMES ASSOCIATE EDI- 
TOR OF THE NEW THOUGHT MAGAZINE. 
BEST WRITING SHE HAS EVER DONE NOW 
APPEARING IN THAT BRIGHT PUBLICATION. 

The many friends and admirers of Ella Wheeler Wilcox 
will be interested to learn that this gifted author and thinker 
has connected herself, in the capacity of associate editor, 
with the New Thought magazine, and that hereafter her 
writings will appear regularly in that bright publication, 
of which the aim is to aid its readers in the cultivation of 
those powers of the mind which bring success in life. 
Mrs. Wilcox's writings have been the inspiration of many 
young men and women. Her hopeful, practical, master- 
ful views of life give the reader new courage in the very 
reading, and are a wholesome spur to flagging effort. 
She is in perfect sympathy with the purpose of the New 
Thought magazine. The magazine is having a wonder- 
ful success, and the writings of Mrs. Wilcox for it, along 
the line of the new movement, are among her best. 
Words of truth, so vital that they live in the memory of 
every reader and cause him to think — to his own better- 
ment and the lasting improvement of his own work in the 
world, in whatever line it lies — flow from this talented 
woman's pen. 

The magazine is being sold on all news stands for 
five cents. It is the brightest, cleanest and best publica- 
tion in its class, and its editors have hit the keynote of all 
sound success. The spirit of every bit of print from 
cover to cover of the magazine is the spirit of progress 
and upbuilding — of courage, persistence and success. 
Virile strength and energy, self- confidence, the mastery of 
self and circumstances are its life and soul, and even the 
casual reader feels the contagion of its vigor and its 
optimism. 

Free. — The publishers will be pleased to send a 
handsome portrait of Mrs. Wilcox, with extracts from her 
recent writings on the New Thought, free. Address, 
The New Thought, 100, The Colonnades, Vincennes 
Ave., Chicago. 



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ThOUght-ForCe (In BusIimjss and Every-Day Life.) 

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A SERIES OF ESSAYS by this forceful writer, constituting the cre^m of his 
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By William Walker Atkinson 

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The Heart of The New Thought cm press, 

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A NEW book of original essays by this gifted woman dealing with The 
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A CLASSIC from the pen of a surgeon in the British Army, stationed in 
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^-* literary style of Mr. Buchanan. This book, which will be ready by the 
end of November, expresses more nearly the high ideals of the author than 
anything he has hitherto published. It gives the essence of a beautiful and 
Uplifting philosophy that cannot fail to benefit and instruct humanity. 

Silk Cloth, Purple and Gold. Price, $1.00, postpaid. 

With New Thought, One Year, $1.35. 



THESE BOOKS ARE PUBLISHED AND OWNED BY 

THE PSYCHIC RESEARCH COMPANY, 

3835 VINCENNES AVENUE, 
CHICAGO. 

All books are sold by this company upon the full refund principle of "Your 
money back if the book does net suit you." 



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